Disproving the media's blatant lies about Israel and Palestine

      With Israel continuing its slaughter of Palestinian civilians, (with the occasional Hamas fighter here and there), the war between the pro-Palestine and pro-Israel supporters in the media and on social media is also getting extremely nasty. Any hope for a rational, logical discussion on this issue is soon thrown out the window in any confrontation because one side calls for the death of the entire other side, or calls each other terrorists, or completely rewrites history to blot out deeds done by the side they support, etc, etc, and all the other usual political bullshit. People no longer wish for the truth, but for the information that makes their side look right and the other side wrong. Who cares about reality when you have a political agenda at hand?!
      What will happen in this post is that I will lay out the bullshit claims, one by one, and clearly explain why each claim is wrong, using logic and facts.

       1. Israel was forced to launch this invasion in self-defense.
       Reality: Israel started this current flare up in hostilities by breaking the 2012 ceasefire in three ways: One: Restricting the fishing waters of Gaza to three nautical miles when they had agreed to put it at six nautical miles. http://mondoweiss.net/2012/12/israel-violates-ceasefire-attacks-gaza-fishermen-who-is-holding-israel-accountable.html
       (This is all the while international standards put it at 12 miles and in the Oslo Accords, Israel agreed to put it at 20 nautical miles, so that's another Accord Israel broke). Two: By lying, saying Hamas murdered three Israeli teenagers in the West Bank, while providing no proof that Hamas did so. When asked for proof, Israel said the information was a "matter of national security," and therefore, could not be released. This is while Israeli authorities knew the teenagers were already dead, but they didn't say so, prevented the media from reporting so, so they could whip up public hatred of Hamas. http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2014/7/israel-hamas-palestiniansconflictunitedstatesinternationallaw.html
     Also, this is while Hamas has denied killing the teenagers, and a Egyptian group has claimed responsibility. http://www.vocativ.com/world/israel-world/egyptian-group-claims-killed-3-israeli-teens/?utm_campaign=June1&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=outbrain
     Notice how mainstream media sources are reporting none of these three actions committed by Israel, nor have they reported about the Egyptian group claiming responsibility for the murders. Why? Because that would show Israel is responsible for instigating this latest round of violence, and that Hamas is innocent of killing the three teenagers.
      I get hate messages all the time simply for writing what I wrote above. Apparently, I am a "anti-Semite, a Jew hater, (even though some of my family is Jewish), and radical Islamist terrorist, (even though I'm not Muslim)," simply for reporting what has been documented by American, Israeli, Palestinian, U.N., and other international organizations. A great case of shoot the messenger, not the message. They are trying to frame the discussion to be that any criticism of any Israeli action is not actual criticism of that action, but because that critic hates Jews. Suddenly, in the world of pro-Israelis, Israel can literally do no wrong, because any criticism of it is automatically and without question anti-Semitism.

      2. Hamas uses human shields, and therefore, they are to blame for each and every Palestinian civilian death.
     Reality: There is no evidence that Hamas uses human shields. This was not said by a radical Islamist organization, but a liberal, mainstream U.S. media outlet, the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/24/world/middleeast/israel-says-hamas-is-using-civilians-as-shields-in-gaza.html?_r=0 But according to the pro-Israelis, the New York Times did not report this because this is what their reporters found out, they published it because they are radical Jew haters.
     All I'm saying, is that if Hamas uses human shields, which they must do pretty often because Israel is killing an average of 40 Palestinian civilians a day, then show me the evidence. Where's the evidence? Back up your claim. Show me the facts. Because the only fact I have is that "There is no evidence that Hamas and other militants force civilians to stay in areas that are under attack — the legal definition of a human shield under international law." (from NYT article).
      On the contrary, the only side that I've seen documented using human shields...is Israel. That's right, the very side that is constantly lying saying that Hamas is using human shields, is actually the side that is fucking using human shields. http://mondoweiss.net/2014/07/survivors-massacre-palestinians.html
     Quote from Palestinian survivor Ayman Abu Toaimah “As Israeli invading troops advanced to the village they besieged it and used residents as human shields. When the Israeli army arrested people and then released some of them, they were told they are free to go back to the village, but as they were fleeing they came under fire and some of them shot dead. These people were used as human shields.”
      How fucking fucked up is that?! Doesn't that make your blood FUCKING BOIL?! This isn't the only time Israeli forces have done this, this is only the most recent time they have done so, hence, why I choose that particular source. There are countless other instances of Israel doing so, you only have to type "Israel using human shields" in a Google search, and you will get all the examples you could possibly want.

     3. Fighting in civilians areas is the same as using human shields.
     Reality: Guerrilla groups, like Hamas, by nature, HAVE to fight in civilian areas. They have no other choice because they do not have the funds nor the infrastructure to have a conventional country's military like the U.S. and Israel do. By saying that fighting in civilian areas is using human shields and/or terrorism, you are taking away the poor peoples' of the world right to self-defense, because that is the only way that they can fight. If Hamas had the money and the territory to have military bases totally separate from civilian areas, then they would do it. But they don't. 1.7 million people are squished in a 26x6 piece of coastline. There is no room for that.
     Throughout history, guerrilla groups have fought in civilian areas, because if they were to meet their state enemy on the open battlefield, then they would be annihilated in two seconds because they don't have jet fighters, artillery, tanks, APCS, the likes. So they are doing the logical, rational thing. The Republican rebels during the Spanish Civil War, the French under Nazi occupation, the Syrian rebels in the Syrian Civil War, the Finnish during the Russian invasion during WW2, the Viet Cong during the Vietnam War, and the American Patriots during the American Revolutionary War all fought using civilian disguises because that was the only way they could fight their enemies. They operated in the shadows of towns, in the underground of cities, in the fields of farmland, etc, etc, because that was the only way they could fight.
      Were they terrorists for doing so? Of course not, you wouldn't call George Washington a terrorist, but at the time, the British certainly did. Were they using human shields? Of course not, you would never say George Washington did that, but at the time, a British officer said something that pro-Israelis say all the time about Hamas: "The Americans are the most absolute cowards on the face of the Earth," "The Americans do not fight us like a regular army, only like savages behind trees and stone walls, out of the woods and fields," "The Americans never engage us properly," "We are enraged at the suffering from an unseen enemy," (Invisible Armies by Max Boot, page 66).

     4. Hamas doesn't get to enjoy the right to self-defense.  
     Reality: Every people, regardless of race or creed, has the right to self-defense. There's no negotiations on this right. I've already explained in a previous post why it is logical and rational to use force to defend yourself when you are physically being attacked, and that if you believe that a certain group doesn't have the right to self-defense, then you are condemning that entire group to death, solely for belonging to that group: http://noholdsonfreedom.blogspot.com/2014/07/every-person-has-right-to-life-and-self.html But the U.S. government does not believe that the Palestinians have the right to self defense, in fact, they call the idea "offensive": http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2014/07/229550.htm      
     Critics of this idea will say "Oh, because Hamas is a terrorist organization, they don't get the right to self-defense." There are two things wrong with that statement. One: If you believe that, then you must believe it for every other terrorist organization. You have to apply the rule fairly to everyone, otherwise, there is the double standard in your logic. Using this logic, then the American military and the IDF do not enjoy the right to self-defense, because they are, by all standards, terrorists. Well, of course pro-Americans and pro-Israelis do not want their own logic applied to themselves the same way they apply it to the Palestinians! Oh no! They certainly couldn't have that! The problem is, anyone can call anyone a terrorist. So that's no criteria for having the right to self-defense.
     Two: Just because someone is a terrorist doesn't mean that suddenly they're not human, and therefore, do not enjoy all the human rights that each and every person is born with. I know everyone likes to dehumanize their enemy, but of course, that is an application of a double standard. The truth is, a person can be a terrorist in the morning, and then in the afternoon, run a soup kitchen for the homeless, and then in the evening, go back to his loving family and be a good father, and then at night, go back on another terrorist raid. Enemies are people, and people have human rights, simple as that. If we used the dehumanized logic, then all someone would have to do is to call a certain group a terrorist organization, and then proceed to slaughter them all. If anyone tried to stop them, the person could say "Oh they're terrorists, so it's okay for me to kill them all." This dehumanization tactic was used in the Holocaust, in Rwanda, in Syria today, etc, etc, and is not something that I want my country to use.

      5. Israel only targets Hamas soldiers and Hamas targets Israeli civilians.
     Reality: Let's look at actions, not statements, because anyone can say they do anything. Judge a person by their actions, and not their words. That way, we can tell who is lying in this case.
     Israel has killed around 1,200 Palestinians at the time of this writing. 80% of those are civilians http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/10967279/UN-80-per-cent-of-Palestinians-killed-in-Israeli-offensive-are-civilians.html
    So, that is:
    Israel has killed 960 civilians and 240 fighters.
    Hamas has killed 3 civilians and 53 Israeli soldiers.
    Those are the numbers, plain and simple. You be the judge as who is to targeting combatants and who is targeting civilians. 

      6. Israel isn't occupying Gaza anymore.
      Reality: If a team of thugs step one inch from your property, guns pointed at your house, and prevent you and your family from leaving, no, they're not on your property, but they're still occupying your house. http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/8807/is-gaza-still-occupied-and-why-does-it-matter. The same goes for the Israeli occupation of Gaza. Israel controls all movement around the Strip. Israel prevents building materials for homes and hospitals. Israel prevents potato chips and chocolate from entering the Strip on security conditions, can't have the terrorist children having a snack! Israel prevents fuel, medicine, and food from entering the Strip. Israel shoots anyone who gets "too near" to their "security fence."
      Sounds like occupation to me.  

     7. Hamas's tunnels are only used for terrorism against Jewish civilians.
     Reality: First of all, we've already debunked the first part of this statement in #5. Hamas targets Israeli soldiers, not Israeli civilians. Look at this video: Hamas dug a tunnel specifically to attack an Israeli army outpost. Not a Jewish neighborhood, not a synagogue. AN ARMY OUTPOST:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NAhozItSq0
     Second of all, the tunnels have a lot of other practical, rational, logical uses due to the Israeli blockade. They bring in goods banned by Israel. They provide jobs for Palestinians in Gaza, which they desperately need, as the unemployment is around 50% http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2014/07/26/335332220/the-long-history-of-the-gaza-tunnels. They allow for Palestinians to actually enter and leave Gaza, since it is next to impossible for them to complete all the requirements needed to leave. And yes, Hamas uses them for sneak attacks. ON ISRAELI SOLDIERS. A guerrilla group has to be adaptive. Hamas changes its tactics. There's nothing wrong with that. It is rational and logical to use tunnels for sneak attacks because Israel hasn't adapted to counter them yet. They're a good way to fight.

     There you have it. All bullshit arguments, laid out one by one, and each one logically picked apart. I have these opinions, not because I hate Jews, not because I'm an Islamic terrorists, but because my opinion is the result I have reached through the analysis of all of the facts.
     
     

Every person has the right to life and self-defense

     It's really sad that I have to write this post in the 21st century. You think that mankind would evolve and figure out that just because a person belongs to a certain ethnic group/ religious group, that doesn't mean that they, automatically and without question, deserve to die. But no, that would be asking WAY too much for humanity.
     The logic is really quite simple. If a person doesn't have the right to self-defense, then that invites anyone to just go up and kill them, and they can't fight back at all. They just have to sit there and take it, and die in the process. Even the Nazis had the right to self-defense. If the American soldiers are attacking them, I'm not going to cry and call the Nazis terrorists when they start fighting back, (they're terrorists for other reasons). Because fighting back is a natural and logical response, it is psychologically engraved in animals and in us as well. Just because a person is your enemy, does not mean they are not human, and therefore, should not enjoy human rights.  
     These are the reasons why every person, regardless of race or religion, (or any other group identity for that matter), have the right to life.
     1. A person is not responsible for the actions done by other people of his/her same religion or ethnicity. Every day, dozens of white people murder innocents in America and Europe, steal from people, kill people in car crashes, commit vandalism, rape people, etc, etc. Just pick up any local newspaper and you'll see examples. Now, imagine how absurd it would be if all the minorities in America and Europe demanded that all white people apologize every single time a white person did any of those things. That's right, you'd be thinking "Hey, I didn't do this crime xyz, why should I apologize for it?"
      You can substitute white people for any other ethnicity and the scenario would be the same. People dehumanize groups they hate, thinking they are all one monotonous group. But of course, they never apply the same logic to the groups they are apart of. A person is only responsible for the actions done by himself/herself, AND THAT'S FUCKING IT. In the Central African Republic, for example, when a group of radical Christians kill Muslim civilians on purpose, it is not "getting back at them" if Muslims go and kill random Christians in a retaliatory attack. Why? Because those aren't the Christians who killed the civilians. DUH!! All the Muslims have done is the exact same thing back to the Christians. They've both committed terrorism now.
     2. If a human being has committed no crime, then they shouldn't be put to death. Again, common sense, which is never common these days. Simply existing is not a crime.
     3. Thinking that because some members of xyz commit a crime, therefore, all members of xyz should die is a double standard, because people never think that about their own race. See this example to illustrate it:
      Racist Jew: A Muslim killed a Jewish civilian today, so all Muslims should die!
      Me (showing the fallacy): A Jew killed a Muslim civilian today, so all Jews should die!
      Racist Jew: What?! You can't take the crimes of one person and apply it to all Jews! I didn't do anything wrong! I shouldn't die!
      See what I mean? They never apply the same logic to the groups they hate and their own group. If they did, then they would think that literally everyone on the Earth should die, because all religions and races have had their share of people who have murdered innocent people throughout history.
      4. All religions and races are equal. Again, so sad that I have still have to write this. For every Asian terrorists I can find a South American terrorist to match, and vice versa. Substitute for any other religion or ethnic group and the statement is still the same. Besides, I'm sure there are more terrorists in one religion than another, for example, more Muslims than Jews, because there are 1.5 billion Muslims and only 15 million Jews. So even if percentage wise they're same, numerically, there will be more Muslim terrorists than Jewish terrorist. Does that mean Islam supports terrorism and Judaism doesn't? Of course not. Since when it is a rule than if your religion has more terrorists than my religion, then that means your religion supports terrorism and mine doesn't?
      Let's just say, for argument's sake, there are 40 million Islamic terrorists, and 34 million Christian terrorists in the world. What moral high ground can Christians have on Muslims? "Ha, you have 40 million terrorists and I only have 34 million! So that means you support terrorism and I don't!" Yeah, it makes no sense.
      5. Self-defense is logical. If you're a Palestinian, just walking through Gaza, minding your own business, and then, your house gets bombed by Israeli warplanes when there are no missiles or militants nearby, killing your family. What is your natural, logical reaction? You go join the group that is fighting Israel. Does that make you a terrorist? No, but unfortunately the only group fighting Israel is a terrorist organization, so technically, yes, you are now in a terrorist organization, and Israel has the right to kill you. But you haven't launched any rockets at civilians. You want to fight Israeli soldiers that killed your family.
     See how real life is more complicated than children stories of "good guys vs evil guys"?

     6. People have the right to self-defense in the best way that they can. If America is attacked, they attack with jet fighters, artillery, marines, etc. If you are attacked in your home by criminals, you attack with a gun. Is your actions automatically terrorism because you aren't a official state military using big expensive equipment? Of course not. But some people act like that's how it is. For example, they think the Free Syrian Army is a terrorist organization because it uses guerrilla warfare, with AK-47's and car bombs, against the Assad dictatorship. But they don't think Assad is, even though he is using jet fighters and artillery against civilians. Why don't they think Assad is a terrorist? Because he is a government, using machines to fight, so therefore, he couldn't possibly be a terrorist. 
      You store your gun in your home, because, that's the legal and rational thing to do, because it is on your property. But if you were a Palestinian in Gaza, Israel would drone strike your house, saying that you're using human shields because you're hiding arms in a civilian building. See how easy it is to twist things to make a normal action look like a terrorist action?  If your best weapon are homemade rockets, then that's what you have to use. If Hamas had jet fighters and cruise ships and artillery, believe me, they'd much rather use those then homemade rockets than cannot be aimed very well. But saying that all methods of warfare except expensive state of the art warfare that only rich countries can afford is "terrorism" is taking away the poor men of the world's fight to self-defense. You'd be condemning millions of people to death just because they can't afford laser guided missiles that your government can conveniently afford.
      In conclusion, this is a quick summary of my post, using again, an example:

• Israel has the right to fight against Palestinian militants, because they are both combatants who are at war with one another. 
• Israel DOES NOT have the right to kill Palestinian civilians, just because they are living in Gaza, or are Arab, or are Muslim etc. There is no excuse. Terrorism is terrorism, no what who the perpetrator.
• Palestine has the right to fight against Israeli military forces, because they are both combatants who are war with one another.    
• Palestine DOES NOT have the right to kill Israeli civilians, just because they are living in Israel, or are Jewish, etc. There is no excuse. Terrorism is terrorism, no what who the perpetrator.

Make people uncomfortable by calling out double standards, that's how you bring change

     The media and the majority of Americans' blatant, disgusting, absolutely ridiculously fucking stupid double standards concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been well documented for decades now. And with the newest story of 3 Israeli teens being kidnapped in the West Bank, the double standard is once glaringly in the open for all the world to see.
      The only way to change someone holding a double standard is to call out quickly and decisively, using logic and reason, not preconceived notions or thinking "that's how I was raised."
      Let's start this post by establishing some truths. One: kidnapping any non-combatants for any advantage in combat or for terrorist purposes, of any race or religion, should be abhorred, not tolerated in our society, punished, and called out for what is truly is: a terrorist activity. This means that:

• Any Palestinian combatant who kidnaps an Israeli non-combatant is a terrorist, as you are using force and the threat of violence against a non-combatant. 
• Any Israeli combatant who kidnaps a Palestinian non-combatant is a terrorist. 

     Simply stating this fair, logical statement will get you branded a Jew-hater, an anti-Semite, a radical Muslim terrorist, and a hater of America. You will get threats of deportation by force, violence, and death simply by stating that it's the action that is wrong; it shouldn't matter the race or religion of the perpetrator or the victim. Don't believe me? Look at my post "Some hate Muslims get on a daily basis," and you'll see what people spew out on the Internet. That shows how fucked up most Americans' views on this issue is. To preach equality and against racism is to be a hating American terrorist. Meanwhile, people who preach inequality and racism are accepted in mainstream American society and politics.
     Now that we've established this truth, let's move onto the double standard. In a nutshell, this story of the 3 kidnapped Israeli teens is gaining a lot of attention in the media and in America. So much significantly more attention than any of the documented thousands of times Israeli soldiers have kidnapped Palestinian children. One must wonder: why? Why are people so much more concerned with Jewish people getting kidnapped, but when Muslim children get kidnapped, significantly less people are concerned about it? The actions are the same; the only thing that has changed are the actors. And this how we can determine that is because of racism that this imbalance has happened. People are judging that, depending on the race of the perpetrator and/or the victims, that determines how they will react to such an action.

     And this is the double standard. It shows that they really aren't against kidnapping children, as long as it's a race and/or religion they don't like, then they're fine with it. They're only pushing this kidnapping of the 3 Israeli teens for political purposes; if they were truly against kidnapping, then they would push Israel every time Israel kidnaps or mistreats a Palestinian child. But they don't.
     But, some might say, Israel doesn't kidnap or mistreat children. What are you talking about, they would ask, you radical anti-Semite? All you have to do is a simple Google search, which takes approximately 0.2 seconds, and you will get literally hundreds and hundreds of reports and cases about Israel kidnapping and mistreating Palestinian children by Israeli, Palestinian, American, European, and international NGOs and organizations. Here are some examples:

• http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-government-tortures-children-by-keeping-them-in-cages-human-rights-group-says-9032826.html 
• http://www.redressonline.com/2014/06/remember-israels-abuse-of-palestinian-kids/. "Pointing out that Israel’s treatment of Palestinian children violates international law, the UN report cited terrifying night-time arrests, physical and verbal abuse, painful restraints, denial of access to food, water and toilet facilities, solitary confinement, coerced confessions, lack of access to lawyers and family members, shackling during court appearances and transfer to prisons outside the occupied Palestinian territories." 

     Critics will say that "oh, these Palestinian children were throwing stones at Israelis, so their treatment is justified." I'm sorry, since when that is a rule? Ever heard of innocent until proven guilty? Guess not, its an old American value that most Americans don't believe in anymore. Even if the Israeli military courts convicted these children of throwing stones, as I said above, many confessions were coerced through torture and threats. That means the conviction is no good, because the confession came through a illegitimate way. Give me a hammer and a few nails, and I can coerce anyone in confessing that they hijacked a Martian spaceship and landed in Washington D.C.
      Don't think that these Israeli "arrests" are kidnapping? What else would you call a bunch of masked men breaking down a door to a family's house in the dead of night, grabbing a child from his/her bed, whisking them off away to an undisclosed location, holding them without charges, and not allowing his/her parents, lawyers, etc, from seeing him/her?          

      The media has a blatant double standard about reporting Israeli children deaths and Palestinian children deaths. The evidence is just completely overwhelming: http://www.ifamericansknew.org/media/net-report.html
     "In the first year of the current uprising, ABC, CBS, and NBC reported Israeli children’s deaths at 13.8, 6.4, and 12.4 times the rate of Palestinian children’s deaths. In 2004 these large differentials were also present, although they decreased in two cases, with deaths of Israeli children covered at rates 9.0, 12.8, and 9.9 times greater than the deaths of Palestinian children by ABC, CBS, and NBC, respectively. Given that in 2004 22 times more Palestinian children were killed than Israeli children, this category holds particular importance. We could find no basis on which to justify this inequality in coverage." 

    Not only that, but the major media outlets repeated coverage of the same Israeli children deaths, to make it look like there were more causalities than were actually were, while, at the same time, omitted reports on Palestinian children's deaths, to make it look like there were less casualties than were actually were. How fucking fucked up is this?! People are using children's deaths for political purposes. Fucking sick!!

    The same thing is happening in the media right now concerning the three kidnapped Israeli teens. All major news outlets have multiple articles about this one kidnapping incident, it's all over the Internet, pundits can't stop talking about it, how it shows that all Palestinians are terrorists and that Israel is the victim, etc, etc. Yet when hundreds of Palestinian children get kidnapped by Israeli terrorists every year? Nothing, maybe a short little blurb here and there, but basically nothing. Not a word of speaking out. Which means they're perfectly fine with it. As long as it's Arab children getting kidnapped, the sick disgusting media outlets are fine with it. 

     One vital piece of information that the media outlets conveniently leaves out when talking about the fact that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds the Palestinian government responsible for the kidnapping: the kidnapping took place in a section of the West Bank that Israeli forces have complete control over and Palestinian forces cannot govern at all. It occurred in Area C of the West Bank, in which Israeli law clearly states that Israeli forces are the security forces of this area, and Palestinian forces, under no circumstances, are allowed to do anything in Area C. How fucked up is that? Stealing someone's territory, and then blaming them for not preventing a kidnapping on that stolen territory that you won't allow their policemen to go onto?  

     In conclusion, this double standard will continue to happen until people like you and me counter it. If you see it in the newspaper, write a letter to the editor calling out this disgusting double standard. If you see it on an online article, write a comment, (if it has a forum), calling it out. If your stupid greedy rich fuck of a senator says something about it in Congress, write a letter to them. If one of your so called friends, (wait, you have friends that support double standards based on religion and race?!), writes about it on any social media forum, counter it, call it out. That is the only way we can bring around change, by showing people, through logic and reason, that they are fundamentally wrong. If you're against kidnapping, then you're against kidnapping no matter the race or religion of the victim and perpetrator. If you make exceptions to your so called morale, then its not a real morale. You can't be against rape, but then think rape is okay against a certain race because you hate them.    

      

  

 

An excerpt from my book "Battalions of Shadow Fall."

(An excerpt from Chapter 2. Jinan and her political advisor Qudamah are traveling to the West Bank from Gaza, in order to start back up Jinan’s late father’s paramilitary organization.)       

          SAME DAY, SOUTH-WEST OF HEBRON, NEAR ABU AL-ASJA

          Qudamah and Jinan had a long day of driving the same day that Brian received his big news. They could not drive directly from Gaza to the West Bank, because Israel had instituted a siege around the entire strip of land. The one exit was through the Rafah Crossing on the Egyptian border. So they drove to Egypt, and then went into the Sinai Peninsula. From there they did basically a big U-turn. They went back into Israel from the Sinai, and then from there they entered the West Bank. Crossing into Israel from the Sinai was not a problem because the border was so long that they easily were able to pass into it without going through a checkpoint.

            However getting into the West Bank was a different story. The Israelis had built their infamous Apartheid Wall around all of the West Bank, sealing it inside of Israeli control. Qudamah and Jinan had deliberated about which of two options to pick as to how to enter the territory.

            Option one would be to go to an Israeli checkpoint along the wall, kill the guards quickly and quietly, and then drive on through the checkpoint. This was the faster of the two options, but the Israeli deaths would attract a swarm of Israeli soldiers to the area, and that could be potentially dangerous for the two resistance fighters as they had a mini arsenal of weapons in their car.

            Option two would be to drive a section of the wall where there weren’t any soldiers around, i.e., away from a checkpoint and away from Palestinian villages. They could blow up a part of the wall, and then drive through the hole they would’ve made. This would take longer as it would take Jinan some time to set up all the explosives and the charge. But it would take hours for the Israelis to notice a hole in the wall that was far away, since the wall was hundreds of miles long. By then, the two would be long gone from the area.

            In the end, the two decided that killing Israeli soldiers, although Jinan would never back down from a fight, would be too risky. So they went with Option two. 10 minutes later, they were in the West Bank, on their way towards the village of Abu al-Asja.

            The two did not talk much. All the driving and the afternoon sun were making Jinan tired. Qudamah had driven in the earlier part of the day while Jinan slept. Then they had switched drivers after they blew the hole in the apartheid wall.

            Now Jinan was driving and Qudamah was busy receiving emails over his cellphone and filing all the important documents needed to run a paramilitary organization on his laptop. Jinan didn’t want to disturb him so she didn’t even turn the radio on.

            She was busy thinking about what happened yesterday, after Qudamah and she got to Qudamah’s house.

           

            FLASHBAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK^[1]

            “Hey kids” Qudamah said as he opened the front door to his house, “We’re back.”

            “Daddy!” 2 little girls came running towards him and hugged his legs.

            “Haha okay let me get through the front door” He said with a smile as he awkwardly stepped a few steps so that Jinan could get inside also. As soon as his girls let go of his legs they ran over to Jinan.

            “Aunt Jinan!” they exclaimed in the same happy high pitched voices.^[2]

            “Hi girls” Jinan as she bent down on her knees and kissed them both on one cheek, “Did you have a good day today?”

            “Yes” the older one named Rana said.

            “Jinan! Do you want to see a picture I drew today?” squealed the younger one named Shireen.

            “Haha sure sweetheart” Jinan said.

            Shireen ran back into the kitchen, where Tasnim, Qudamah’s wife, emerged from. She was a middle aged woman with curly dark brown hair that went down to her neck. She was wiping a big stirring spoon clean with a towel, so that meant she was cooking. Almost certainly dinner. She had a glare in her eyes that Qudamah had been unfortunately gotten used to the last couple of weeks. 

            “Hello honey” Qudamah said as he pecked a kiss on her lips, “Is there anything I can do?”

            “No” she replied, “Dinner is actually almost ready. You two came at a good time.”

            Meanwhile Jinan and the two little girls were sitting on the couch near the front door. Shireen was showing Jinan her picture.

            “Shireen’s been showing everyone that picture all day” Rana said to Jinan.

            “Mhmmm and I remember your dad telling me that you did the same thing when you were her age” Jinan said.

            She unfastened her hijab and pulled it off. Her wavy black hair, which came down to her waist, came tumbling down. She shook it around a little to get it out of her face, much to Shireen’s amusement.

            Qudamah, without even thinking about it, looked in Jinan’s direction when she did this. Tasnim saw this right away and gave Qudamah a quick slap on the wrist with her big metal spoon that she was using for stirring.

            “Ow!” Qudamah hissed, making sure to keep it below Shireen’s and Rana’s talking to Jinan.

            “I saw that” Tasnim said as she went back into the kitchen.

            Qudamah rubbed his wrist as he walked back in with her. Jinan noticed all of this but gave no indication that she did. She continued to talk and play with Shireen and Rana.

            “What the hell was that for?” Qudamah asked sternly as Tasnim continued preparing dinner.

            “You know exactly what it was for. This isn’t the first time you’ve looked at her like that.”

            Qudamah’s ears and face reddened.

            “What? So I looked at her. Big deal.”

            “It is a big deal to me” Tasnim replied as she chopped up some celery and put it a pot full of boiling water that was on the stove.

            “Tasnim, you’d better get over the fact that Jinan and I work in the same organization, so we’re going to be together most of the days” Qudamah said sternly.

            “Am I? Or am I supposed to get over the fact that you and Jinan had a fling several years ago, and judging by the way you looked at her, I don’t think it’s completely done.”

            Qudamah gritted his teeth but didn’t say anything. The only noises were the water boiling, Jinan blowing a raspberry on Shireen’s stomach, and Shireen giggling with joy.

            “That was before we got married” Qudamah said finally.

            “I know. But do you see where I am coming from?” Tasnim said, dropping her confrontational attitude, “I’m middle aged, chubby. Then I see my husband running around with this beautiful younger woman, who he had a fling with.”

            “I do see where you are coming from” Qudamah said as he walked away towards the stairs, “But you being jealous all the time is not going to help matters.”

            FLASHFORWARD TO THE PRESENT

            “I’m sorry” Jinan said.

            “What?” Qudamah asked, barely looking away from his computer screen.

            “I said I’m sorry.”

            “For what?”

            “For causing…..tensions between you and Tasnim.”

            “Jinan” Qudamah started, looking up from the screen, “That is absolutely not your fault at all. You are not responsible for Tasnim’s behavior.”

            “I know, but I should’ve asked to have stayed at another person’s house, or at least kept my hijab on even when I was indoors.”

            “That is behind us. You asked me if you could stay because you were just returning from abroad after you had run away for 8 years, and you didn’t know who else you could’ve trusted.”

            Jinan smiled back at him.

            “There’s a roadblock up at Kurza by the way” Qudamah said as he pointed down the road, “So you’d better turn right up ahead.”

            “Thanks” Jinan replied as she did so.

            “You can turn the radio on now” he continued, “I’m done doing my work, at least for now.”

            Jinan did so and flipped through the stations, trying to get to a news station. She didn’t like most of the hip-hop and pop shit they played on the radios most of the time. They drove in a curve around a hill that was past the intersection that she had just turned onto.

            “JINAN STOP!” Qudamah suddenly yelled.

            Jinan looked up. There was a whole crowd of people randomly in the street. She slammed on the brakes, screeching to a halt. She had not seen them earlier because they were turning around a hill.

            Now that they were stopped they could figure out what was going on. All of the people were either Israeli soldier or settlers; the soldiers were armed with TAR-21s and some of the settler had AR-15s or M-16s.^[3] They were all crowded around something, but neither Qudamah nor Jinan could tell what or who it was.

            “Jinan just back up and get out of here, this is not good at all” Qudamah said tensely.

            Jinan started to do so, but then she saw what the settlers were gathered around.

            “They’re beating up two Palestinians, look!” she said.

            Through the mass of people, Qudamah could make out a man and a woman lying on the street with their hands covering the back of their heads, jolting every time a settler kicked them.

            “Ah shit man” Qudamah sighed.

            Jinan turned around in her seat and opened a secret compartment behind her seat. She pulled out her cherished AK-74M^[4]. It had an ACOG scope on top on its rails and a grenade launcher on the bottom. On one side of the stock there was an Iraqi flag painted on it, and on the other the Palestinian flag was painted on it. 

            “Jinan….” Qudamah said gravely as his face turned white.

            “Don’t even think about stopping me” Jinan said sternly as she pulled the bolt back and then letting it go forward, putting a bullet into the chamber “Those people need our help.”

            “Yeah but there’s like 2 dozen armed Israelis!”

            “Like I give a fuck” Jinan replied as she hid the rifle under the robes of her chador.

            She got another magazine and put it in her pocket. Then, she got out of the car and started to walk towards the settlers.

            “Jinan!” hissed Qudamah, but she did not acknowledge him as she continued to walk towards them.

            None of the settlers noticed her because they were all too focused on the couple they were beating up. The ones that weren’t actively stepping on them or kicking them were yelling curses and racial slurs at them. Jinan didn’t speak a word of Hebrew so she didn’t know what they were saying. None of them noticed her until it was too late.

            Jinan got within 2 yards of the group and then opened fire on them. The results were devastating. The bullets mowed down the group of radical settlers like blades of grass. Blood and guts were spewed everywhere as the bullets tore through the bodies. The Palestinian couple stayed on the ground, getting drenched with blood.

            Chaos and panic followed. The settlers scattered, scrambling to find cover from Jinan’s onslaught of bullets. The Israeli soldiers that were nearby were on high alert now. They figured out where the shooting was coming from and shot back at Jinan.

            She was forced to duck for cover behind an Army jeep. She left 7 bodies lying on the street. It was hard to see who was dead and who was mortally wounded. The Palestinian couple staggered from the bloody mess, completely dazed.

            “Find cover!” Jinan yelled as she gave them some covering fire to give them some time.

            The couple crawled over to their car and shut the door, bullets ricocheting off of the metal.

            There were 6 people shooting at Jinan, and they were spread out in 3 different locations. There were 2 settlers not 15 yards in front of her, shooting from behind another Army jeep. Then there was a soldier to her left about 50 yards away, shooting from behind a roadblock. Lastly there were 3 soldiers up on a hill about 150 yards in front of her.

            “Damn, gotta take care of this fast, otherwise they’re gonna call for reinforcements” Jinan thought as she gritted her teeth.

            She looked over the hood of the Army jeep. As the soldier on her left stood up to shoot at her, she shot at him first, hitting him 3 times in the chest and left shoulder. He fell down behind the roadblock. With her attention on that soldier, the two remaining settlers rushed around the other side of the jeep. Jinan realized this too late. She turned around in horror as the settlers closed in on her, raising their weapons.

            Out of nowhere a car rammed the two settlers from behind, sending them flying past Jinan and into the roadblock. Jinan looked at the driver.

            It was Qudamah.

            But Jinan had no time to thank him. She spun around and shot the two settlers who lay bloodied and dazed on the ground, before they could recover and shoot her back.

            The bolt on her AK stayed back, meaning she was out of ammo. She pulled the empty magazine out, and switched it out with the other one she had.

            All was quiet now. Jinan peeped her head over the jeep again to figure out where the other 3 Israeli soldiers were. But she scanned the whole hill and didn’t see them at all. Jinan warily stood up, and walked over to the Palestinians’ couple’s car, where the couple was hiding in.

            “Are you two okay?” she asked.

            “Yyyeeesss” the man stammered.

            The woman could only nod her head.

            “Good. You’d better get out of here fast. Stay in your village for the next couple of days until things simmer down” Jinan said.

            “Okay” replied the bewildered man as he started his car.

            The car sped off down the road. Jinan walked towards the pile of settler’s bodies, where 2 of them were still alive, barely moving.

            “Jinan let’s go!” said Qudamah in a hushed voice.

            He was scared that the Israeli soldiers were still nearby, about to strike again while Jinan wasn’t paying attention. But Jinan stood over the two men that were still barely alive, and shot them both once in the head. Qudamah winced.

             Then, she ran over to Qudamah’s car. He moved from the driver’s seat into the passenger’s seat. Jinan got in the driver’s seat, tossed her AK in the secret compartment, and sped off just as fast as the Palestinian couple did.

            “Oh shit oh shit oh shit” Qudamah said as he placed the cover over the compartment.

            Jinan said nothing as she continued to drive.

            “You really did it now Jinan, the Israelis will swarm this place like motherfuckers until they find us” Qudamah said, the panic evident in his voice.

            “Those terrorists forced my hand” Jinan replied sternly, “What was I supposed to do, just turn around leave that poor couple to die? Cuz you know that’s what was going to happen if I didn’t intervene, it happens all the time here.”

            “I know I know I’m sorry, you did the right thing, but I just wish it didn’t have to happen on our first day here” Qudamah said, checking his map on his computer, “You know, before we got our organization even off the ground.”

            “I know” Jinan replied.

            She drove fast for a while longer, and then slowed down to a normal speed so they wouldn’t stand out amongst the other cars on the road. She was silent as Qudamah listened to his Israeli police scanner, figuring out what the best route to take based on where their opponents were sending their officers. He, unlike Jinan, spoke Hebrew pretty well so he could understand the majority of what they were saying. Jinan understood none of it but could tell by the tone of their voices that she had hit a hornet’s nest by saving that couple.

            “Thank you” She finally said, “For saving me back there.”

            “Huh?”

            Jinan pointed towards the small dent on the car’s hood from where Qudamah hit the settlers.

            “Oh….you are welcome. They forced my hand as well, I had to do something.”

            Jinan looked at him and said “Do not worry Qudamah. We will get past the Israelis and to our destination. I know you can guide us to safety.”

            Qudamah smiled back as he listened to the scanner again, taking notes on his computer about the Israeli police positions.

            AL-KHUSNA, WEST BANK

            Jinan and Qudamah were not the only ones busy at work. All of the other Palestinian factions also had to get a lot of work done before their next meeting the following week. Sa’dun Daher, the DFLP leader who was also at the meeting in Gaza, faced the daunting task of trying to re-activate his faction, which had disbanded in 2005. He was at his house in al-Khusna, a suburb of Bethlehem. The long and difficult list of all of the things he had to do in order to have a battle ready faction was causing him a bit of stress. He knew what his first step would have to be: simply calling up old members and influential people in the community to see if they wanted to work for him. Before he did anything else, he needed manpower. So, he sat down on his living room couch, got his untraceable cellphone, and went through his personal telephone book. Of out all of the conversations he had that afternoon, one of them stuck in his mind, illustrating just how hard it was going to be.

            “Look Ismail, stop beating around the bush. If you don’t wanna join back up again, then just say so. You being indirect is just wasting my time; I got dozens of other people to call today” Sa’dun said harshly.

            “Well I’m sorry you think talking to me is a waste of time” Ismail shot back.

            “Ah! I didn’t mean it that way” Sa’dun exclaimed, “I enjoy talking with you, but now, this is different. This is business, and time is money.”

            “Fine. I don’t wanna join the organization again” Ismail said, “Because I have a wife and kids now. I have to think about them, and their future. If we bring war to Palestine again, things are going to go right back to the way they were during the Intifada. And that FUCKING sucked.”

            “Is this the future you want for them? Living under occupation? Not having any rights?”

            Ismail was silent.

            “I’m not gonna try and convince you to join up again” Sa’dun said with a sigh, “If you don’t have the will to fight in your heart anymore, then I cannot put it there. It has to be sincere from you, and you alone.”

            “I’m sorry Sa’dun, but that part of my life is over now” Ismail said, “I fought my fight, now I am done.”

            Sa’dun ended the call, and looked about his living room in frustration. It was serenely quite in the mid-afternoon. The sun’s rays shined through the partly curtained windows, lighting up the floating dust in the room. Sa’dun had a rather small but quite nice one story house. He and his wife Zinat, their two children already grown up and moved out of the house, did not need a lot of space so they were perfectly content with their house.

            The curtains were a dark purple, and the carpet of the living room was a greyish-tan. Sa’dun was sitting on a large couch facing their small T.V., and there was a smaller couch right next to it, making an L shape. Ornate candlesticks and curiosities dotted the small tables next to the couches that had reading lamps on them. The foyer, which was just a small vinyl floored area in front of the front door to leave one’s shoes, was to the right of the living room, if you were facing the T.V. like Sa’dun was. The kitchen was past the foyer, and the only bedroom connected the kitchen and living room. Zinat was in the kitchen, just starting to make dinner.

            “All of this could go away if we start fighting again” Sa’dun thought to himself, “Is that really what I want?”       

          THE MORNING OF AUGUST THE 16^TH FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA

          Brian picked up the newspaper the next day while eating his breakfast, to see the headline of:

PALESTINIAN TERRORIST ATTACK LEAVES 7 ISRAELIS DEAD, 3 WOUNDED

       “Hmmm this is interesting” Brian thought as he sipped his coffee, “Palestinians rarely kill this many people in one attack, not like they used to back in the 80’s and 90’s.”

            He continued to read the story that was right under the headline.

-Reporting from Jerusalem

        A group of 4 Palestinian terrorists attacked a group of Israelis traveling in the West Bank near the settlement of Otniel, killing 7 and wounding 3 in the worst terrorist attack in the West Bank in years. An Israeli army spokesman said that 2 men and 2 women, dressed in civilian clothes, opened fire on Israeli civilian cars with assault rifles from their concealed positions next to a road near the settlement. When the IDF approached the scene, the terrorists bade a hasty retreat. The IDF soon lost track of the cars amongst traffic.

        “We have the entire southern part of the West Bank under lockdown right now” the army official said, “So that means the terrorists have not left the area and that it will only be a matter of time before we find them and kill them.”

        This comes just after the Israeli military bombed a terrorist house in Gaza 2 days ago, wounding two terrorists. Israeli analysts believe that yesterday’s attack was in response to the IDF strike.

          “I’ll have to find out if my office has any additional information on this; Peter did say to stay on top of events in Israel so I’d be up-to-date when I arrive there.”

          SAME DAY, TO THE EAST OF BETHELHEM, NEAR AL KHUSHNA

          In fact, the Israeli army official couldn’t have been more wrong about Jinan’s and Qudamah’s position. Thanks to Qudamah’s directions and Jinan’s excellent driving skills, the two managed to get north of the area that the IDF was locking down before they actually managed to lock it down. They were safe and sound, well, as safe as sound as you could be in the West Bank. They had spent the night at a fellow al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigade member’s house, a man by the name of Ajib Safar. Ajib was in-between the ages of Qudamah and Jinan. His skin was a lot lighter than both of theirs also. He had brown hair that was cut in a buzz cut, and a full beard that was not too long.

            The next day Ajib drove them to a small military base in Al Khushna, one that the Palestinian Authority, (PA) had allowed them to use for their operations. Of course, if the PA knew that the Brigade actually intended to fight Israel, they would never had allowed it, since they were obsessed with their 2 decade fruitless “peace talks.” The Brigade had told the PA that they just wanted to help in security in the West Bank, and since the PA was short on manpower due to their extremely low popularity amongst Palestinians, they allowed them to.

            It was a little after 10 o’clock, and Qudamah and Jinan were taking inventory in the main warehouse in the very small complex. It had mostly small arms but it had a few armored cars in there as well. Ajib was outside, welcoming volunteers that had responded very quickly to Qudamah’s emails that he had sent out the previous day. Ajib told them to sit down in rows of chairs out on a field next to the warehouse. Qudamah and Jinan were due to speak with them after they were done taking inventory.

            “Are you pleased with our stock here?” Qudamah asked Jinan.

            “It is sufficient for a couple dozen fighters, which is a good start” Jinan replied, “If we continue to get funding from the PA and buy more weapons, more of the same and more different ones, then we should be adequately prepared to fight Israel when the new government comes into power.”

            “Leave that to me and we should be good” Qudamah said, “The international market is full of sellers of all the weapons we could ask for. And since we have the sympathy of much of the world, some governments might even just give us a bunch of equipment for free, or at least give them as a loan, since our organization does not have a lot of money.”

            “Gotta love the globalized 21^st century, right?” Jinan asked with a smile.     

            “Of course” Qudamah smiled back.

            Ajib came walking inside the warehouse.

            “Your exploits are on the cover of every single Israeli newspaper” he said, “Look.”

            He threw down a newspaper at Qudamah’s and Jinan’s feet. Jinan waited for Qudamah to translate it or at least say something about it. He chuckled.

            “Of course it calls us terrorists; we weren’t expecting anything different” he said, “But it also says that the couple we saved also took place in the attack. Apparently all 4 of us, two terrorist couples, ambushed them.”

            Jinan had to laugh. If she let herself get mad at Israeli lies and propaganda, then she would always be angry. There was no use in getting mad at something she couldn’t help.

            “And it says all the settlers were un-armed, just driving down the highway” Qudamah continued, “Oh, and it said that an Israeli soldier tried pleading with you to stop before you shot him.”

            “Right, was that before or after he was kicking a woman in the back of the head while she was huddling in fear?” Jinan sarcastically asked Qudamah, “Anyway, I’d better go out there and talk to our new recruits.”

            She motioned towards a few various guns that she had separated from the rest.

            “Can you gentlemen please carry those for me? I’m just gonna show them a few of what we have.”

            Ajib, eager to do practically whatever Jinan told him to do, happily went over to get a couple while Qudamah, rolling his eyes, grudgingly took the rest off of the concrete floor.    The 3 walked out of the warehouse.

            There were about 40 men waiting for them outside. The morning sun shined brightly over the field as the 3 made their way over to three chairs that were behind a table that was facing the rows of men sitting in the chairs. After setting the weapons down on the table, Qudamah and Ajib sat on either side of Jinan, who stayed standing up to talk to the men.

            “Okay, it’s 10 minutes past 10, which 10 o’clock is when I said I would start, so, as to not be as late as every other aspect of Arab society, I’d like to start now” Jinan joked.

            Most of the men laughed.

            “I’d like to thank each and every one of you for coming to this meeting on such short notice” she continued, “your promptness and eagerness shows your love for your Din, (religion), and your country.”

            She could tell just from facial expressions of some of the men that they were confused that a woman was addressing them and not Qudamah or Ajib. She could tell that a confrontation would erupt, just like in the meeting in Gaza. But she didn’t want to bring it up; she would wait for one of them to bring it up.

            “I am Jinan al-Najjar, and I’ll be leading this, orientation, if you will, to our brigade. As my political advisor Qudamah told you yesterday, either by phone or through email, however he contacted you, we are starting up the al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigade, which has been inactive ever since Fatah pursued the “peace process,” even though it is hardly peaceful for us. As I’m sure you have heard by now, we are having national elections on December 20^th. We have much work to be done if we want our brigade up and running to serve the new elected government.”

            “However we are not going to organize this brigade like a standard military brigade. We are going to organize it like a guerrilla unit, because that is how we must fight if we get attacked by the Israelis, because there is no way we can match them in open conventional warfare. So that means we will be relying mostly on small arms and small explosive devices. I have some weapons here that I hope will become standardized according to what role you have in a unit.”

            “I know many of you have fought with the AK-47. It is a great rifle and has served us well. But it is outdated, and we must move on to a newer assault rifle, at least as new as we can get while still being able to buy a huge quantity of.”

            She picked up an AK-74M that was identical to her own, minus the custom painted flags of course.

            “This is an upgrade to the AK-47, the AK-74M. Made 17 years after the AK-47, this rifle is very maneuverable, light, can be bought for a very cheap price, and can compete with the assault rifles the Israelis use, which are mostly the TAR-21, M-4, M-16’, and Galil. The rails also allow us to put on optics that will make it perform better in combat. I know this will be something that many of you will have to adjust to, because you are used to shooting AK-47’s that don’t have any optics at all, just standard iron sights.”

            The group of men was silent after she paused. They were stunned that a woman would know so much about weaponry. Not that Jinan presented a lot of information, it’s just they didn’t think a woman would know anything about guns.

            “You can pass it around, it’s fine, it’s unloaded” Jinan said as she motioned to Ajib.

            Ajib took the rifle and handed it to the man who was sitting in the corner of the first row.

            “Now, being a guerrilla organization, our infantry are often pitted against vehicles, both on land and in the air, without vehicular support of their own” Jinan continued, “that means our anti-vehicle weapons are of the utmost importance. The rocket launcher of choice for us has historically been the RPG-7. However that launcher has some major drawbacks. It’s big and bulky to carry, and not that accurate over long distances. I have something that remedies both of those.”

            She pulled out a rocket launcher that was only a meter long.

            “This is a M72-LAW. As you can see it’s a lot smaller and lighter than the RPG. This advantage cannot be overstated because it is so crucial that our troops be able to move fast, in tight spaces, and carry a lot of ammo.”

            A man in the third row raised his hand.

            “Yes?” Jinan asked.

            “The United States, who developed that weapon, phased it out a while back, replacing it with the AT-4” The man said, “Why aren’t we gonna use that instead?”

            “What is your name, sir?” Jinan asked.

            “Ruwaid, ma’am” he said humbly.

            “That is a very good question Ruwaid. What you say is true. There are some missile launchers, such as the AT-4 and RPG-29, which can shoot farther than the LAW and are more powerful. However, they are much bigger than the LAW. I have found from personal combat experience that I value maneuverability and the ability to conceal easily over penetration and power.”

            As soon as she said personal combat experience most of the men started to murmur amongst one another.

            “You’ve actually fought before?” another man blurted out.

            “Yes” Jinan replied in an irritated voice, “I fought in the last Intifada and in the Iraqi insurgency for 3 years.”

            This made the murmuring only louder.

            “Now, if I may continue-“

            “You’re lying!” yelled a man in the back row.

            “I’m sorry, were you with me my entire life to see if I actually fought or not?” Jinan mockingly asked.

            “I wouldn’t have needed to. You’re a woman, you cannot fight.”

            Jinan’s nostrils flared just like in the meeting in Gaza.

            “Here we go again” Qudamah thought as he rolled his eyes.

            “If I cannot fight, then you should have no problem fighting me” Jinan challenged.

            “Hmph! I do not hit women.”

            “Yet you have no problem publically insulting them. Okay, whatever, shut up.”

            Many of the men laughed. They turned around to see what the man in the back row would do next.

            “Why are you letting her speak for your organization man?” he asked as he pointed to Qudamah, “It’s obvious that you are the leader of this brigade.”

            “Who, me?” Qudamah asked, “No, I am not the leader. As Jinan said earlier, I am her political advisor.”

            “Why are you covering for her?”

            “I’m not.”

            “Sir, if you do not shut up and stop wasting my time, I will have to ask you to leave these grounds” Jinan said, her patience fading fast.

            “Ha, like you could make me.”

            Jinan started to walk towards him.

            “Sir I would really advise that you leave before she gets to you” Qudamah warned as Jinan walked down the rows, “Seriously you do not know what you are getting yourself into to.”

            The man ignored him as Jinan came closer to him. Everyone was silent as all eyes were on the two. The man stood up and smirked.

            Jinan kicked him in the left calf, and in his reaction he let up his guard on his face. She then followed up with a punch to his right cheek, sending him sprawling to the ground. She picked up the empty chair that he had been sitting in, folded it, and started slamming it down on the back of his head. Everyone winced as the guy covered the back of his head with his hands as Jinan slammed the chair down a second and third time, the metal making a deafening BANG noise every time it slammed into him. 

            After the third time, the man, still lying on the ground, kicked out in a sweeping motion with his right foot. The kick caught both of Jinan’s feet, causing them to flip out from under her. In panic she let go of the chair, sending it flying up in the air while she went down. She landed in the dirt on her butt, gasping in pain.

            The man leaped onto her, and wrestled with her for a few seconds. He grabbed her wrists as she struggled to break free of his grasp. Now the spectators were alarmed at this; it was natural for them to help a woman if she was being attacked. Some of them got up out of their chairs or at least half got out, waiting to intervene if things got any worse for Jinan.

            “You’re gonna pay for that one, bitch” the man snarled.

            In a split second he let go of Jinan’s right wrist and punched her in the mouth. Before she could do anything else he had already grabbed her wrist again.

            “Don’t count on it, asswipe” she shot back.

            She pulled up her feet under him, and launched him over her, making him land behind her on his back. In the same motion she jumped to her feet, while the man was struggling to get on his. His face was exposed as he was using both of his hands to push himself upwards. But before he could do that, Jinan let out a cry and kicked him as hard she could in the face. She put so much power into it that she had to spin around on her other foot to avoid falling to the ground. The man spun to the ground. When he didn’t get up after a few seconds, Jinan realized that she had knocked him out cold.

            The other men were in complete silence in shock. They could not believe what they had just seen. All except for Qudamah, who had heard of Jinan doing similar things to men dozens of times before. He could only smile.

            Jinan spat out some blood in the dirt, turned towards the crowd, and asked “Now, does anyone ELSE have a problem with being led by a woman?”  

 

---

[1] Should be said with a deep opera voice.

[2] Jinan was not Qudamah’s sister but since the two had known each other for so long, Qudamah’s children called her Aunt.

[3] Israel has hundreds of illegal settlements in the West Bank, completely built and paid for by the government. Only Jews are allowed to live in these settlements; no other person from any other religion is allowed to even visit them. The government has built them in strategic areas in the West Bank to cut off Palestinian villages from their farmland, water sources, and each other. 

[4] An upgraded version of the AK-47.

I hope you guys enjoyed the read. I appreciate any feedback or comments. Since I cannot afford an editor or a publisher at this time, it might be at least a year until I finally publish this book. But I will definitely let everyone know when I do.