“You gave a meaning to the meaning”, this is how Lebanese writer, novelist, playwright, critic and intellectual, author of the Bab Al-Shams novel, Elias Khoury, started his letter that he sent to the activists who installed the new Palestinian village, Bab Al-Shams, near occupied East Jerusalem.“A letter to my people, my family in Bab Al-Shams village”, Elias started his letter, and added “I wish I was there, with you, I see you, and I see how the dream became a reality implanted in the land”.
The Lebanese intellectual sent his best wishes and regards to all activists who installed this new Palestinian village, in the land of Palestine, to those who told the occupation “this is our country, this is our land, we have the right to build in our own state”.
The activists said that this village, built on lands that are dubbed by Israel as E1, is part of the state of Palestine, and that their decision came after Israel decided, a few months ago, to build more than 4000 units for Jewish settlers in the area.
The E1 area is located east of Jerusalem in the area between the Maale Adumim illegal settlement bloc and occupied Jerusalem.
The area is 13 square/kilometers and the lands in question belong to Palestinians from Al-Esawiyya, At-Tour Abu Dis, Al-Ezariyya, Anata and Az-Za’yyim.
In his letter, Khoury said that this is Palestine, “when you built your village, you returned Palestine back to Palestine, you gave words a meaning”.
“I see in your village the faces of the loved ones who went missing on the road, and came to land, the land of Palestine, Palestine the homeland of those who were expelled from their homes and lands, thrown out of their land, and treated as strangers while they are the indigenous nation of this country, its Olive trees and its olive oil”
“I see in your eyes a homeland born again from the rubble of the Nakba that started 64 years ago, and continues to happen, I see the words, I see you growing in my consciousness, I see you flying high reaching out to the sky”.
Khoury published his letter through a report by Journalist Mohammad Younis of the Al-Hayat Lebanese newspaper.
