A story from Israel...

I took this story from End The Occupation Now! myspace-site. Wake Up Everybody!

Melissa's Story

This is a personal story from a myspacer named Melissa. Please read about her experience visiting Israel.

Asalam alaikum!I am an American woman married to a Palestinian. Your website is so true! I travel to Palestine every summer and I can tell you that as an American, I have been treated like trash by the Israelis. It starts as soon as I land in Tel Aviv. I go get Visa and I am always pointed to the direction of the interrogation room, as I call it. I do not wear a Hijab and I am a white American. When they read my last name, I am "red-flagged". Everyone in that area are Arabs. It sometimes takes 2,3 or 4 hours for them to interrogate me.They want to know my fathers name, grandfathers name, etc. They ask me why am I there.Every checkpoint is a hassle. They know from our liscense plate that we are Palentinians. I have been to Ramaallah, Haifa, Acaba, Red Sea , Dead Sea, Eilat, Yafa and more. I do agree with you 100% that they purposely make it difficult for you because they don't want you there!One time at the Bethlehem checkpoint, the soldier asked if I lived around Shrevport, Louisiana and I told him I did. He said that he was born there! That was the only time that I had an easy experience from them. How can an Israeli soldier be from America?? Because they have Jewish blood! They are allowed dual-citizenship! When my husband became a US citizen , he had to give up his papers there. If we wanted to live in Jerusalem, we are denied that right!By the way, the man on the bus you talked about, the one who said that it wasn't his fault, he sounds like my father-in-law. On another occasion, my husband and I took a cab to drop off my brother-in-law at the airport. We were stopped at the checkpoint before the airport. They made us get out of the car and go into a interrogation building that was at the checkpoint. They took us one by one in the room and asked us many questions. They took my American brother-in-laws luggage out and went through it piece by piece. He then asked the soldier why were let letting the Jews pass through and not checking them. The soldier told him that they don't stop Jews only Arabs. He replied I am not of Arab decent, I am American. The soldier said that since he was with Palsetinians, they treat him as if he was one. That checkpoint took us over two hours.