Another Eid Al-Fitr has passed and another Christmas will be upon us soon but we still seem to be <strong>in</strong> the same b<strong>in</strong>d. No major breakthroughs are expected <strong>in</strong> the near future so we are not apt to hope for tangible improvements <strong>in</strong> the New Year. But we can always dream… We, at <strong>This</strong> Week <strong>in</strong> <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong>, rema<strong>in</strong> hopeful as we celebrate our fifth birthday this December (see the letter from the publisher, page 74). While not perfect, we strive to improve all the time and <strong>in</strong>troduce new changes. One such change is the “Personality of the Year” that we will be featur<strong>in</strong>g every December. The personality need not be rich or famous; on the contrary, we aim to feature persons who portray the real Palest<strong>in</strong>ian that represents the majority of the population. Every December also, we <strong>in</strong>tend to highlight a “Book of the Year” as well as “Artist of the Year”. The articles <strong>in</strong> this issue are many and varied. One looks at volunteerism <strong>in</strong> <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong> Open Letter to President Bush .................... 3 International Volunteer Day ......................... 4 Hell’s Journey: Com<strong>in</strong>g Home to Gaza ....... 7 Falafel 2 Diesel .......................................... 10 A Shepherd from Bethlehem ..................... 15 Events ........................................................ 20 Film Reviews ............................................. 16 Film of the Month ....................................... 27 CD of the Month ........................................ 28 The Palest<strong>in</strong>ian Museum ........................... 29 Exhibition of the Month .............................. 34 Bus<strong>in</strong>ess for a Better Future ...................... 35 Personality of the Year ............................... 36 Artist of the Year ........................................ 40 Book of the Month ..................................... 43 turbo-design Message from the Editor Telefax: 02-2951262; e-mail: <strong>in</strong>fo@turbo-design.com www.this<strong>week</strong><strong>in</strong>palest<strong>in</strong>e.com The views of all the articles do not neccessarily reflect the views of the publisher Photos: <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong> Image Bank / TURBO Design Cover: Taisir Masrieh as it celebrates International Volunteer Day while another describes the ordeal of a Palest<strong>in</strong>ian travell<strong>in</strong>g to Gaza from Egypt. And Delia Khano takes us on another of her Stories from <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong>. We wish all our readers happy holidays and a peaceful New Year. Tony A. Khoury Editor Advisory Board (Alphabetically) Dr. Hasan Abu Libdeh Palest<strong>in</strong>ian Central Bureau of Statistics Sam Bahour PLAZA Shopp<strong>in</strong>g Centers Ziad Khalaf A.M. Qattan Foundation Mounir Kleibo UNDP/PAPP Dr. Sabri Saidam Internet Society – <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong> Chapter Cyber <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong> ......................................... 44 Website Review ......................................... 45 Museums ................................................... 46 Cultural Centers ......................................... 47 Accommodation ......................................... 49 Restaurants ............................................... 53 Restaurant Review .................................... 58 Herbal Medic<strong>in</strong>e ......................................... 58 Transportation ........................................... 60 Travel Agencies ......................................... 61 Airl<strong>in</strong>es ....................................................... 63 Diplomatic Missions ................................... 63 Banks ......................................................... 65 Statistics .................................................... 66 Health ........................................................ 67 Emergency ................................................ 68 Maps & where to go .............................. 69-73 The Last Word ........................................... 74 <strong>This</strong> publication is Dear Mr. President, I believe, Mr. President, that <strong>you</strong> are badly advised and poorly surrounded and I s<strong>in</strong>cerely hope that <strong>you</strong> will unburden <strong>you</strong>rself of the shallow and belligerent neo-conservative ideology and the delirious Christian fundamentalist theology. As a descendent of the early Christians – who were, by the way, converted Jews – each time I hear the evangelicals, I feel a need to proclaim and defend “the <strong>in</strong>nocence of God.” My understand<strong>in</strong>g of the Christian faith is that Christ has never left us and that there is no need to support unquestion<strong>in</strong>gly Israel’s territorial appetite to accelerate His return. S<strong>in</strong>ce the end of bipolarity and the mergence of a unipolar <strong>in</strong>ternational system, I personally believe that nonalignment should be what characterises American foreign policy. America is a fasc<strong>in</strong>at<strong>in</strong>g society because it is “a nation of nations.” When the American adm<strong>in</strong>istration sides, <strong>in</strong> a regional conflict, with one of the belligerent parties, it not only antagonises all the other actors <strong>in</strong> the region but it also alienates and ghettoises one component of the domestic national social fabric. And <strong>in</strong> the Middle East, one ought to remember that it is Israel that occupies <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong> and not the other way around. Mr. President, the perceived collusion between the American and the Israeli agendas has put America on a collusion course with the Arabs and the Muslims. The unresolved Palest<strong>in</strong>ian tragedy is what is poison<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>ternational relations. America gives Israel a lot of aid and, occasionally, some advice. You seem, Mr. President, to have grown accustomed to see Israel take all the aid and leave the advice aside. Many senior Americans have been for long advocat<strong>in</strong>g that the adm<strong>in</strong>istration should l<strong>in</strong>k its aid and its advice to “save Israel <strong>in</strong> spite of itself” (George Ball, among others, s<strong>in</strong>ce over three decades). We Arabs have understood that the U.S.A. is committed to Israel’s existence. But are <strong>you</strong>, Sir, committed to its expansions? The Arab world has been unreasonably reasonable. In the Fez summit <strong>in</strong> 1982, aga<strong>in</strong> proposed by the Beirut summit <strong>in</strong> 2002, all Arab leaders offered the Israeli society a formula for a historical compromise: if <strong>you</strong> withdraw from the 1967 expansion, we are ready to recognize Israel’s existence. Israeli public op<strong>in</strong>ion should be made to understand that security and peace will result from regional acceptance and not territorial aggrandisement. And we, the Palest<strong>in</strong>ians, are the key to the regional acceptance of Israel. A Palest<strong>in</strong>ian state is not only our right, but it is also a Jewish duty, an Israeli moral obligation, bear<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> m<strong>in</strong>d the enormous human price, <strong>in</strong>dividual and collective, we have had to pay for the birth of Israel. In the gloomiest of times, I rema<strong>in</strong> confident that <strong>Palest<strong>in</strong>e</strong> will resurrect and, as <strong>you</strong> know Mr. President, we <strong>in</strong> the Holy Land, we have had some previous experience <strong>in</strong> Resurrection. S<strong>in</strong>cerely, Afif Emile Safieh Palest<strong>in</strong>ian General Delegate to the United K<strong>in</strong>gdom and to the Holy See 2 3 Open Letter to President Bush