In Amos Gitai’s film “Ana Arabia”, premiered in Venice this week, a Palestinian whose late wife was an Auschwitz survivor and Muslim convert treks to Arab cities to find a dentist instead of one five minutes away in Tel Aviv. In “Bethlehem”, the work of an Israeli director and Palestinian screenwriter, an Israeli Shin Bet…
In 1906, during renovations at the Franciscan friary in Bethlehem, the workers found a treasure. Buried in the ground was the oldest known organ in the world − built in the 12th century − as well as 13 ancient bells. Twelve of the bells had been cast in Europe at the end of the Middle…
A Catholic monastery and convent in a secluded valley outside Bethlehem lost a seven-year legal battle against the building of Israel’s separation wall on its land on Friday, according to its lawyers. The Society of St. Yves, a Catholic human rights group which argued the case on the monastery’s behalf, said an Israeli appeals court…
President Barack Obama made a pilgrimage on Friday to the traditional birthplace of Jesus, receiving a subdued reception from Palestinians at the end of a Holy Land visit heavy on symbolism and lacking in practical steps toward peace. “Gringo, return to your country,” read a sign held by a small group of Palestinian protesters who…
“Many people still believe the post of mayor is exclusively for men,” says Vera Baboun, aiming to become the first female mayor of the Palestinian town of Bethlehem, and in the process shake up a society where men still make the laws and do the deals. The university lecturer has a good chance of achieving…
UNESCO has agreed to name the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem as a World Heritage Site, and list it as in Palestine. The secret vote, which came during the United Nations body’s World Heritage Convention in St. Petersburg, Russia, was 13-6, with two abstentions. Israel and the United States had opposed the move, seeing…
The enemy, Sami Adwan believes, “is the person whose story you haven’t heard.” So, together with his American colleague, Robert Vogel, he has embarked on a mission to make sure Israeli and Palestinian school children hear each other’s stories. Adwan, a professor of education from Bethlehem University, and Vogel, from Philadelphia’s La Salle University, are…
Crossposted from Haaretz “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Israeli Ministry of Tourism” says the sign that currently greets visitors to Bethlehem. It is a bit ironic, given its location next to checkpoints manned by armed soldiers wearing bulletproof vests. How does one deal with such a siege? With a sense of humor:…
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