Beit Ommar: Bitter and Sweet, 112110, Beit Ommar, West Bank

I just wanted to write some impressions and what happened after yesterday's demonstration in Karmei Tzur. After it was over and we returned back home, we ate together. We were tired and frustrated since we had 6 people arrested by the Israeli soldiers, especially the Palestinian kid, who I learned that was 14 years old. We now needed to wait until they were released. We didn't know how long they were going to be detained, we just knew from a couple of days before that the people arrested previously were detained for 7 hours and later released. So, that's what we were hoping for .We knew they took them to the Karmei Tzur settlement and later into the Qyriat Arbaa settlement.

I was so tired from running so much, trying not to get harmed by any tear gas or sound bombs. I just wanted to go to sleep, but I knew that it was going to be a long night. We watched the protest in the local news, and waited without any news from the people arrested. Later I went with the two Israeli girls in their car to Beit Sahour to sit in a cafe and relax a little bit, there we met the rest of the internationals. Me and the two girls were stopped by the PA police in the entrance to Bethlehem, so they pretended they were tourists and not Israelis. They were not supposed to be there. On the same day we were close to be arrested by both the Israeli army and the PA!!!

Later in the night, we received a call that the guys were soon to be released. Mohammed the little kid was not going to be released because the soldiers claimed that he threw stones, which was not true!!! It was around 11:30 pm, so I drove with Moussa to the Qyriat Arbaa settlement, so when they were released we were there waiting for their call. We waited, and waited... first in the gas station, and then we moved to the entrance of the settlement. We were very tired and frustrated that we didn't get any news. I decided to take a nap, but it was impossible, as there were cars constantly going in and out of the settlement, and I was just too anxious that the soldier in the entrance could come and ask us what were we doing there. Plus there were other soldiers patrolling in military vehicles. The fact that I was with a Palestinian made things not so favorable for us. I can imagine what I was going to say to the soldier: "I am just waiting for my friends that are coming soon". He would reply,"Where do they live, and me: they are just doing something in the police station and they will be right back!" (Big Smile!!!!)

After two hours we decided that we were in a potentially vulnerable situation and returned to Beit Ommar. It was like 1:30 am and we were really exhausted. The second we got to Beit Ommar, you guessed it; they called! We returned back to the settlement and brought them home. At which point it was around 2:30 am. Eric, our 82 year old roommate and brother in the struggle was awake waiting for the guys! He refused to go to sleep until the others were safe home.

Tygh, our roommate from Holland, who was one of the arrested, was eating a half shawwarma that was on the fridge! He started to check the footage of the demo while eating his shawwarma. At some point I saw Eric eating some of the shawwarma. I thought that Tygh was finished with it! Before I went to sleep, Tygh said: "I think Eric stole my shawwarma." I thought to myself: "Yes I saw him eating some of it", I smiled and said to Tygh: "Yes, maybe he thought you were finished". So, this is how a day deep into the Palestinian struggle looks like.Bitter and sweet, with its ups and downs, some days I feel so powerful, I can change the world and some others, so little and insignificant, but I guess that that's why it is called a STRUGGLE!!!