Have you ever visited the Bedouin Community in the Reshayda? It is a place in the middle of the Jerusalem wilderness , south of Bethlehem, where the Bedouins welcome visitors, offering them a hot cup of herbal tea, a traditional Palestinian meal or a place to overnight. The Bedouin Community of the Reshayda in the Jerusalem Wilderness is struggling for their existence on their lands, as their tents have been continuously where threaten to be torn down by the Israeli authorities with the intent of removing this community completely from their ancestral lands and familiar environment. The Bedouin camp lies in Area C, which is under the Israeli authority, and therefore, has no investment or development.
Aware of the threat to the Bedouins, the Masar Ibrahim al Khalil (the Abraham Path in Palestine) and the Siraj Center have included the Reshayda Wilderness and its Bedouin community as part of their activities with the aim to support the Bedouins and to help protect their existence by organizing one-day, multi-day hikes and overnights. Among the highlights of the programs are watching the sunrise or sunset, which is from the Bedouins’ land that reaches the cliffs overlooking the Dead Sea.
By taking local and international tourists to be hosted in the camps, the Bedouins are providing traditional meals and hospitality to visitors. Travelers are introduced to the Bedouins’ way of life, their customs, traditions and their reality of being threatened to be forcibly removed from the desert. Besides the tangible benefits of financial rewards, there are also the intangible: the intercultural exchanges that take place between the visitors and the hosts of breaking down barriers, fostering communication in this little known region of Palestine. Reshayda and the Bedouin community are on the map as more and more people from around the world visit the Bedouins and are hosted by them.
Incomes are provided to this marginalized sector of the Palestinian society, enabling them to resist and remain steadfast on their lands and in their camps. As a result, the livelihood of the Bedouins is being enhanced. This is all thanks to the continued support and commitment of visitors who hike through the desert to then experience authentic Palestinian food and Bedouin hospitality in the tents.
MIAK and Siraj offer the Reshayda Sunrise Walk, which takes the walker through the desert of Reshayda, experiencing the serene landscape, a jeep ride to the the sunset/sunrise point, and back to the Bedouin tent to enjoy a Bedouin authentic hospitality.
Continued support is needed for the Bedouin community of the Reshayda Desert!
Register now for a unique opportunity to the walk in the desert of Reshayda on Saturday, 12th of December, where you will be able to overnight in the Bedouin tent, and in the early morning, watch the beautiful sunrise with the Dead Sea in the foreground and the mountains of Jordan in the background.
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