February 2020
I still have a few days to live here before going back to Italy. That very same Italy which now, due to a “SmartVirus” (as I call it), is suffering and going crazy.
I said “live”, rather than “remain” or “spend time”, because here, in the South Hebron Hills, and in particular in At-Tuwani, we live.
It does not matter the time going by, especially in this season when the days get longer and time passes slowly.
We live every second in a more authentic and full way, without wasting it.
We enjoy the beauty of the small things, of being together, of the family, of the friends, of the neighbor.
Almost, I would say, we are in peace, light heartedness, freedom and serenity.
PALESTINE
News
Burin (Nablus), October 19
In the Palestinian village of Burin, Israeli settlers of the illegal outpost of Givat Ronin attacked Palestinian farmers who were picking olives. The settlers stole olives, threw stones by hand and slingshots, burnt the field, shot live ammunitions against Palestinians, Internationals and Operation Dove volunteers on the spot. Three Palestinians were injured in the attack.
Never give up
Stars never cheat. Here the sky offers always a marvellous show. Tonight in Sarura the orange nuances of the moon invade the space together with the immense Big Dipper.
Sit beside me, A. is lighting a camp-fire, trying to stoke the embers. The flame revives the still life at our feet. Satisfied by the fire, A. turns to me and says: “See, it's the things where you put yourself and all of your energy to give you the biggest satisfactions”.
I nod and smile back.
Fire now gives us heat.
I turn to him and ask: “How can you be so peaceful and full of energy? So empathic with us and the world, despite your land is frayed by violence that tries to erase your lives and your freedom?
Armed Israeli settlers invaded the Palestinian village of At-Tuwani
On March 10 at 11.00 am, more than 30 armed settlers from the illegal Israeli outpost of Havat Ma’on invaded the Palestinian village of At-Tuwani.
More than 20 Israeli soldiers, police and border police arrived in the village, but did nothing to remove the settlers, who remained in the village for more than two hours. The residents of At Tuwani, including the women and children and accompanied by international and Israeli activists, confronted the settlers and prevented them from entering homes in the village.
The Israeli settlers threw stones and threatened Palestinians with guns. In response the soldiers used teargas and sound grenades to move the Palestinians and activists out of the area, and then declared a large area of Palestinian land, including agricultural areas and olive groves, a closed military zone. Army and Border police continued to occupy the village throughout the day.
I have a problem, I can’t feel rage
I left the first time with a good dose of unconsciousness mixed with carelessness. I left probably not fully comprehending the intensity of emotions I would have felt once arrived in At-Tuwani. I didn’t understand that it couldn’t just be three months, a relatively small chapter in my life. I didn’t know that that departure, so unaware and naive, would have led me to today. After, nothing has ever been done ingenuously and nothing has ever been easy.
It hasn’t been easy to see my parents’ reaction to the “mum, dad, I’m going back and I will stay for two years”, I was aware that I has hurt them and gave them pain. I will forever remember that moment in which I clearly felt that I was torned in two: on one side them, and on the other simply the foggy image in my eyes of Aboud and Meriam, my neighbours’ toddlers in this village. They won, I’m here in At-Tuwani.

OPERAZIONE COLOMBA
