Home NewsMiddle East S. Africans witness Israeli brutality firsthand in Al Quds

S. Africans witness Israeli brutality firsthand in Al Quds

by Salaamedia

A group of South Africans currently touring Al Quds, Palestine, have related firsthand accounts of brutality against Palestinians by the Israeli forces. They described the incident as terrifying and anger-provoking.

When Aamina Patel and her parents stepped out of a mosque after Fajr prayer in Jerusalem, the air was thick with the tension of occupation. Soldiers patrolled the streets of the historic land, armed to the teeth, as tourists and locals went about their lives.

It was then, she said, that her parents saw a young Palestinian – likely in his twenties – being put up against a wall and searched. She might have not noticed it, but moments later the thuds of running footsteps pricked her ears. A baton brushed against Aamina as soldiers tried to catch up with running boys.

The baton was then slammed on them.

Recalling this incident, Patel said she felt terrified and that a burning anger swelled within her. “They were pushing the boys and they were smiling about it … [The boys] just smiled at the guards. They don’t want to fight the guards. They’re not trying to provoke the guards,” she said.

 

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Volunteers

Patel is one of several in a group of South Africans currently visiting and volunteering in the holy lands during Ramadan. Ruqayyah Dawood had experienced emotional trauma herself before she decided she needed to do something meaningful.

She then found herself at the Augustine Victoria Hospital, a community hospital and church complex situated in East Jerusalem. Her work here was to help take care of children suffering from various ailments in this, more than a century-old, hospital.

“I really felt something needed to be done. I needed to do something to give back to other people in order to fill the gap within me. We went to bring a little joy and to get a little joy,” she said, in a live broadcast from Al Quds.

Another South African, Rabia Mustapha, also volunteered in the same hospital. She found the experience to be “heartbreaking” and said it left her with a yearning to remain there.

“It was really heartbreaking to see those beautiful little children suffering with all sorts of ailments. It was very sad. They do need our help, they do need our support, they need our financial help and, alhamdulillah, I feel like I have felt purpose in life.”

She said she would remain there if she had a chance. “I didn’t know what I was coming here for. Palestine was always at heart, but this time it has really touched me now that I am here. If I can stay here and help the children to see them through this difficult time.”

Speaking alongside these South African guests, Professor Mustafa Abu Sway, Dean of the College of Islamic Studies at Al-Quds University in Jerusalem, likened activism to the work of Imam Ghazali.

“Imam Ghazali would not shy away from writing to those in office about the changes in prices,” he said. “Essentially, his role as a theologian at the time did not prevent him from addressing the wrongs that took place in society and he responded, whether it was metaphysics or down-to-earth issues like prices [of food].”

“We always think that Palestine needs us, but actually we need Palestine,” concluded Ruqayyah.

Ayesha Cajee spoke to several South Africans currently in Al Quds about their experiences. Watch the full discussion here:

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