Life in the Middle East
(Photo: AP/Wide World)
"/>School students in the eighth grade in northern Israel stand still, or place their hands on their faces, in Muslim prayer. They were observing a moment of silence in honor of "Al Naqba," or the catastrophe, as they call their displacement by the founding of Israel in 1948.
(Photo: AP/Wide World)
At the youth center, adults sat at the cafes sipping coffee or tea and watched their children run from the swings to the slides on the playground. A crowd of teenagers sat on the sidelines under neon lights and watched their friends play basketball on an open-air asphalt court.
But this peaceful scene has not been the norm for more than a year now. Since Palestinians began the Intifada, or uprising, last September, violence between Palestinians and Israelis has become an almost everyday occurrence.
Travel between Palestinian villages is slow and cumbersome because of Israeli Army checkpoints. Cars are snarled in traffic for hours, waiting for permission to move on. Old women in embroidered robes carry packages and hold their childrens' hands as they weave between cars trying to cross through checkpoints on foot. Some children hold towels over their heads to protect them from the searing summertime sun.
Snipers have made travel along some roadways too dangerous to risk. Journalists travel on these roads only in armored cars. Most people avoid driving on them at all. Suicide bombers in public shopping areas have created fear and anxiety around the otherwise routine activities of shopping or riding a bus.
"Last year I took my children to the pool at least 20 times during the summer," said Naqle Atir, a taxi driver from East Jerusalem. He is the father of two boys and a girl, ages 6, 3, and 1. "This year I haven't taken them once."
According to Razi Refnik, the manager of the Iftah security company in Tel Aviv, the demand for security guards at cafes, restaurants, concerts, and kindergarten classrooms has doubled since the Intifada began. A coffee shop on Hillel Street in Jerusalem recently hired a guard to stand in its doorway.
"Yes, we're all scared," said Ephrat Darwy, 16, a worker at the shop.
Negotiations to settle differences between the two sides have so far failed. Israeli leaders say they will not be forced into making concessions by violence. They have called for a complete halt to all violence before returning to peace talks.
Palestinians counter that Israelis are allowing the actions of a single bomber or sniper to determine national policy. Leader of the Palestinian Authority, Yasir Arafat, has condemned the violence, but claims he cannot control every Palestinian. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he must do all he can to protect the citizens of Israel.
"You can't demonize either side," said Ari Alexander, 21, a counselor in Arab-Israeli coexistence programs. "You must take into account each side's reality of fear and danger. Look between the lines and see all the human beings involved in this conflict are devastated by what's going on."
- Teacher Store
-
Decisions, Decisions: The Cold War
The Teacher Store 
Decisions, Decisions: The Cold War
The Cold War defined world events for a generation, from the division of Europe, to the war in Vietnam, to the nuclear arms race. Decisions, Decisions: The Cold War puts students at the center of these issues.
By understanding the critical themes of the era, students begin to understand the world today. The simulation sparks discussions on terrorism, political ideologies, and more!
Topics covered:
- 20th Century History
- U.S. Foreign Policy
- World Events
- International Politi $149.00
CD-ROM | Grades 5-10
Grades 5-10 $149.00
- Scholastic Store
-
Sunrise Over Fallujah
The Scholastic Store 
Sunrise Over Fallujah
by Walter Dean Myers
Scholastic Summer Challenge Book Pick.
Operation Iraqi Freedom, that's the code name. But the young men and women in the military's Civil Affairs Battalion have a simpler name for it: WAR.In this new novel, Walter Dean Myers looks at a contemporary war with the same power and searing insight he brought to the Vietnam war of his classic, "Fallen Angels". He creates memorable characters like the book's narrator, Birdy, a young recruit from Harlem who's questioning why he even enlisted; Marla, a blond, tough-talking, wisecracking gunner; Jonesy, a guitar-playing bluesman who just wants to make it back to Georgia and open a club; and a whole unit of other young men and women and drops them incountry in Iraq, where they are supposed to help secure and stabilize Iraq and successfully interact with the Iraqi people. The young civil affairs soldiers soon find their definition of "winning" ever more elusive and their good intentions being replaced by terms like "survival" and "despair. "
Caught in the crossfire, Myers' richly rendered characters are just beginning to understand the meaning of war in this powerful, realistic novel of our times.
$17.99
Learn more about Walter Dean Myers.
books;hardcover books;hardcovers | Ages 12 and Up
Ages 12 and Up $17.99
