"The Carnation and the Thorn" – Yahya Sinwar (story, part 40)

The fourteenth season

At that time, a civil war was raging in Lebanon, and the Palestinians there were also suffering greatly from the conflict. News of the war in Lebanon would cause endless despair in the occupied Palestinian territories. Because there was no house or family that was not affected by this war.

The Palestinian people were twice dispersed to different regions: the Nakba (Catastrophe) in 1948, and the Naksa (Painful Retreat) in 1967. (These two terms are used to describe the wars between Egypt and Israel in 1948 and 1967.) These two wars were the main reason for the dispersion of families. Half of one family was in a camp in the West Bank, the other in Lebanon, half of another family was in the Gaza Strip, the rest in camps in Jordan. Still others had left on their own or had been forcibly sent, for work or other reasons. They could no longer return, because the doors of return were closed to them.

At that time, we had no relatives in Lebanon. But many of our neighbors had siblings or children there. Our poor neighbors spent their days in a state of nervousness, listening to the frequent news broadcasts. Some women had been accepted into the "Tovrat" (a school of law) in Lebanon and had settled there. As these women listened to the news, they became anxious and wanted to know at least a little about their children.

The problem was that there was no telephone service at that time. Traveling to Lebanon was expensive and difficult. Because Israel had poor relations with Lebanon, the borders were completely closed. Anyone who wanted to go had to travel through Jordan. It was also a fact that those who wanted to travel to Lebanon would face problems with Israel's internal affairs.

One of our neighbors had two sons in Lebanon. The mother from the village almost lost her mind because of this. At that time, she seemed to be mentally ill, wandering around, and seemed pitiful. Her body was like a log from refusing to eat and drink, and her children were so sick that they forgot to sleep. The neighbors tried to help the woman as much as they could, to ease her pain. They forced her to eat at least a little to help her recover.

The war dragged on and on. One day, the camp residents woke up to the sad news about the mother of the rebels. The mother passed away without receiving any news about her children...

To be continued...