Abraham's Path update

[sillydoll]

Hundreds of people have walked Abraham's Path this fall. Groups included a class of American middle-school-aged poets. International university students from four countries joined Palestinian students for the second International Youth Walk. And a group of potential trip leaders from the US and the UK walked in Jordan and Palestine.
A team of staff and partners opened the complete segment of the path stretching across Palestine from Nablus to Hebron in November 2010, a testimony to the local leadership of the path in Palestine.
The section of the path in Turkey, Hz. Ibrahim Kultur Yolu, is one of a handful of trails that will be supported by the Turkish Ministry of Tourism's new Association for Cultural Routes and Walking Paths.
The UK Friends of Abraham's Path is now officially established in London - expect to hear more soon!
The new symbol of Abraham's Path (or the Masar Ibrahim al Khalil).
In one story of Abraham, he was sitting beneath the oak trees of Mamre near Al Khalil or Hebron when three travelers approached him. Only after he had welcomed them and offered them a meal, did he discover the three strangers were angels. It is because of stories like this that Ibrahim is associated across the Middle East with the values of hospitality and friendship. And it is because of this story that we have chosen the oak tree, which has been beautifully rendered for us by designer Tarek Atrissi.

Read more:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/s ... iddle-east

 

[Deleted member 3000]

JERUSALEM (AP) — The body of a female American tourist, bound and with multiple stab wounds, was found Sunday near a road outside Jerusalem, police said.

Her friend, an immigrant from the U.K., had reported her missing a day earlier after she too was found nearby, also with knife wounds and her hands tied, police said.

The two had been hiking in a nearby forest when they were assaulted by two Arab men and her friend was dragged away, she told police on Saturday.

The woman's disappearance set off a large-scale hunt by police and military in the wooded hills outside Jerusalem.

Before the body was found, police had been investigating other scenarios for how the crime might have unfolded. The discovery of the stabbed and bound body, however, reinforced the possibility that militants may have been involved, police said.

 

[jindoke]

Hello friends and pilgrims.

Please be aware that this tragedy with the American tourist did not happen along Abraham's Path, and was in no way connected with the route. Many hundreds of people have walked the first sections of Abraham's Path in Turkey, in Jordan, and in Palestine over the last few years, and without exception these travelers have been received with kindness and generosity by the village people who live along the route and who guide and host travelers on the path. Indeed, this kindness and hospitality is one of the really special features of the path. Because there is no infrastructure of rural tourism in the area, all walkers are staying inside family homes when they walk the route, and have a real opportunity to get to know the people and culture of this place. The Middle East is so closely associated with violence and hostility in the public imagination that it is important for people to come and find out for themselves that the vast majority of people in this part of the world are every bit as gentle and welcoming as people along the Camino.

 

[renegadepilgrim]

People who join a forum to counter a negative post don't always get my respect. Be honest. The Middle East is not always safe (in comparison to other parts of the world) and when people like you join a forum to counter something negative, it doesn't make me feel any better about the situation. Someone lost their life and you are minimizing that. Yes, she was not on the Abraham Path. But she was in Israel and she was murdered. Plain and simple. I'm sure there is much more to the story that the American media is not telling us. It is important to be aware of the risks involved in traveling to the Middle East, especially as a woman. Sorry, but I recently traveled to Israel/West Bank/Jordan, and I was treated rather poorly because of my gender. It is not always safe to travel alone or even together as a woman in the Middle East.

 

[Caminando]

....

 

[Caminando]

JERUSALEM (AP) — The body of a female American tourist, bound and with multiple stab wounds, was found Sunday near a road outside Jerusalem, police said.

Her friend, an immigrant from the U.K., had reported her missing a day earlier after she too was found nearby, also with knife wounds and her hands tied, police said.

The two had been hiking in a nearby forest when they were assaulted by two Arab men and her friend was dragged away, she told police on Saturday.

The woman's disappearance set off a large-scale hunt by police and military in the wooded hills outside Jerusalem.

Before the body was found, police had been investigating other scenarios for how the crime might have unfolded. The discovery of the stabbed and bound body, however, reinforced the possibility that militants may have been involved, police said.

Hmmmm....not sure what this has to do with the Abraham path. Odd.

I wouldn't really regard the comments about "militants" with any confidence whatsoever; it reminds me of the Rachel Corrie.

 

[renegadepilgrim]

Hmmmm....not sure what this has to do with the Abraham path. Odd.

I wouldn't really regard the comments about "militants" with any confidence whatsoever; it reminds me of the Rachel Corrie.

You're joking, right? This has nothing to do with what happened to Rachel Corrie. She stood in front of a bulldozer knowing full well what the consequences were if she did not move out of the way and paid the price with her life. If you read my previous post, I also acknowledged this did not have anything to do with the Abraham Path. It has everything to do with how much more risk is involved being a woman traveling in the Middle East, regardless of country.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

So the death penalty is appropriate for the crime of standing in front of an Israeli bulldozer?

 

[Caminando]

Hmmmm....not sure what this has to do with the Abraham path. Odd.

I wouldn't really regard the comments about "militants" with any confidence whatsoever; it reminds me of the Rachel Corrie.

You're joking, right? This has nothing to do with what happened to Rachel Corrie. She stood in front of a bulldozer knowing full well what the consequences were if she did not move out of the way and paid the price with her life. If you read my previous post, I also acknowledged this did not have anything to do with the Abraham Path. It has everything to do with how much more risk is involved being a woman traveling in the Middle East, regardless of country.

If you read my previous post you can see that I spoke of "the" Rachel Corrie - which as you know was a ship legally carrying aid to the ghetto of Gaza. The Israelis said that those on the ship were "militants"; just like the report about the "Arab" men. The "militant" crew didnt get out of the way so I guess you'd say they deserved to pay with their lives. And you say in effect that R.Corrie deserved to be killed.... I see you give your occupation as "Save Lives, Stamp Out Disease".

These above are facts that I give; my single comment is - what a worrying situation.

You may be right about attitudes to women in the Middle East, from what I've seen.

Finally, please note that I did not refer to your previous post, but only on the crime report. You have a few things wrong here, and are barking up the wrong tree. I'll say no more about it.

Buen camino

 

[renegadepilgrim]

No, caminando, you are barking up the wrong tree. I was in Israel after the flotilla incident and based off what I learned while there, you don't have all the facts either. There is a lot more to the story than you know and there was quite a bit about it in the media (both conservative and liberal) when I was there.

And falcon and caminando, I did not say that Rachel Corrie deserved to die, only when you stand in front of a bulldozer you better be prepared to suffer the consequences, including death. She ultimately paid with her life. The Israelis do not mess around. I don't understand why everyone is shocked when things like this happen.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Sorry, but inhuman acts always shock me. I hope they always will.

 

[hel&scott]

The Middle East is not always safe (in comparison to other parts of the world) ... I recently traveled to Israel/West Bank/Jordan, and I was treated rather poorly because of my gender. It is not always safe to travel alone or even together as a woman in the Middle East.

Yes and no - I've travelled at lot over the years including as a solo female in areas discussed and others coming out of conflict. I'll never forget the heads in the gutter in Cambodia on the cusp of an election, nor for that matter being smashed with a beer bottle less then 30m from my home when I was a girl, safe home in godsown.

Common sense goes a long way and yes travel junkies going into the Beqaa Valley valley un the eve of a cease fire isn't my idea of common sense (yes Scott I am talking about you).

Waiting to hear if my daughter safely made it out of prolonged trip through the Middle East on her own certainly aged me - but the worst she got was being hit on by some random Aussies and having to wait in Lebanon until the tires finished burning and the country was open again.

Let's not start another holier then thou war, and just remember to be careful out there~=!