January 2015201

Boosting the Palestinian Economy

alestine

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Ahmad DamenContent Editor

Dr. Mamdouh Aker Urologist

Vera Baboun Mayor of Bethlehem

Aref Hijjawi Author and media expert

Dr. Nabeel Kassis Director of Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS)

Sami Khader Director General of MA’AN Development Center

Nour Odeh CEO, Communications Consultancy

Advisory Board

February 2015: Then and Now

March 2015: Spiritual Tourism

April 2015: No Specific Theme

Forthcoming Issues

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Publisher: Sani P. MeoArt Director: Taisir MasriehGraphic Designers:Shehadeh LouisHassan Nasser

Printed by: Studio Alpha, Al-Ram, JerusalemMaps: Courtesy of PalMap - GSEDistribution in the West Bank: CityExpress

Boosting the Palestinian Economy

4 Growth in the Palestinian Economy

10 After Gaza: Europe Scrambling to End Its Complicity

18 Decolonising the Palestinian Economies

24 One Bank’s Journey in Supporting SMEs

28 The First National Export Strategy of the State of Palestine

32 Value Adding and Speciality Markets

40 Coca-Cola Factory in Gaza

44 The Capital Market

46 I Choose You, Palestine

52 Business Etiquette

58 For Economic Development, We Need Freedom

62 In the Limelight

66 Reviews

68 Events

70-86 Listings

87-97 Maps

98 The Last Word

Cover: #GiftFromPalestineIllustration by Carlos Latuff, a Brazilian political cartoonist.

The views presented in the articles do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.Maps herein have been prepared solely for the convenience of the reader; the designations and presentation of material do not imply any expression of opinion of This Week in Palestine, its publisher, editor, or its advisory board as to the legal status of any country, territory, city, or area, or the authorities thereof, or as to the delimitation of boundaries or national affiliation.

In this issueA critical question for a critical year – 2015: How can we move forward when our economy is still under occupation?

We have seen great efforts within the Palestinian market to encourage the purchase of our national products. Local stores, factories, restaurants, and various service providers have stopped using and selling Israeli products and have chosen instead to produce, use, and sell Palestinian

products. An insider from one of these initiatives provides us with an examination of this phenomenon and its implications in “I Choose You, Palestine.”

Rather than simply analysing the situation at hand, however, we have asked a number of economists and authors to offer their take on the matter: Can we find such a solution by collaborating with all Palestinians in different parts of historical Palestine? Should we de-colonise the economy or centralise it? Should we be focusing on niche markets for exports? What are our future projects to support our exporters? Are the boycott efforts our best way to move forward?

This Week in Palestine is a place where opinions are freely expressed. Although we do not embrace any of these opinions, we want to provide a wide spectrum of views to help YOU, our readers, decide on the best course of action.

This issue constitutes yet another effort to define a new role for This Week in Palestine in our society and present a new level of content that is both controversial and challenging. We want to start 2015 with a fresh plan that falls in line with the recent changes in the political situation and aspirations for freedom.

By the end of this month we will also be in China receiving our award at the Beijing World Summit. We hope to share more news about this in our February issue, “Then and Now.”

We wish our readers a good start to 2015. May it be a year filled with achievements and hope, both individually and nationally.

January 2015201

Boosting the Palestinian Economy

alestine

By Nur Nasser Eddin and Abdalwahab Khatib

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Growth in the Palestinian Economy Drivers, Restrictions, and the Way Forward

raphing growth rates of the Palestinian economy over the past twenty years would be like sketching a roller-coaster ride. The trend becomes even more erratic if growth rates for Gaza and the West Bank are plotted separately. Understanding this volatile economic behaviour requires taking a careful look at the main factors that have been driving growth, in addition to the key impediments that are faced by economic agents. Only then can a full rounded

understanding of how the Palestinian economy works and what can be done to help it reach its potential be developed.

With the advent of the Oslo Peace Process and the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1994, the Palestinian economy experienced rapid growth that was enabled by the return of Palestinian refugees, restoration of livelihoods, and large inflows of public and private capital. Thus between 1994 and1999, growth averaged 9 percent and unemployment declined to below 9 percent.

After the outbreak of the second Intifada in 2000, however, this trend was quickly reversed. The peace process stalled, violence increased, and the government of Israel imposed a multi-layered system of physical, institutional, and administrative restrictions that fragmented the territory into small enclaves that lacked most forms of economic cohesion. This exacted a significant toll on the economy and constrained private investment and productivity. The real rate of growth quickly deteriorated to -9 percent and unemployment surged to 28 percent by the end of 2000.

Following the internal divide in mid-2007, a new PA caretaker government was sworn in, and it pursued recovery and fiscal stabilisation. Reforms carried out by the caretaker government were widely endorsed by the international community, which suppor ted these efforts through providing large amounts of aid. Donor aid fuelled public and private consumption that, in addition to some easing of Israeli movement restrictions and PA-led reforms, enabled the Palestinian economy to recover. In fact, growth rates averaged 9 percent between 2008 and 2011, and standards of living improved as GDP per capita reached US$ 2,665 by the end of this period.

Nevertheless, the economy has been struggling ever since. The downturn s ta r ted in 2012 when growth decelerated to about 6 percent as a result of a steep drop in foreign aid. This immediate response to the decline in aid reveals an inherent structural weakness in the Palestinian economy, which is lacking a competitive and dynamic private sector that can fuel growth and employment. The economic decline continued throughout 2013, and the economy actually slipped into recession in 2014, even prior to the star t of the latest Gaza war. Recent estimates indicate that full-year growth

in 2014 would amount to about -4 percent. With the unfolding recession, unemployment has reached a new high, particularly in Gaza where it stood at about 45 percent before the war (latest available data). Since poverty is highly correlated with labour-market outcomes, it is not surprising that a quarter of the Palestinian population has been living in poverty, and it is expected that the recent Gaza war has pushed many others below the poverty line (latest available data is for 2012).

Decomposing recent growth trends provides a very important insight into how the structure of the Palestinian economy has deteriorated in recent years, making it less competitive. For instance, most economic growth witnessed over the last years was in the public and non-tradable sectors whose share in the economy increased from 19 percent in 1994 to over 30 percent today. This has been positively reflected in the quality and quantity of public services provided by the government.

Following political instability, the second largest obstacle to business, as perceived by enterprises, is the lack of reliable supply of electricity, particularly in Gaza.

Photo courtesy of Al Shabaka.org.

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But growth in the public sector has not been accompanied by an expansion of sectors that can generate public revenues to continue the provision of those services over the medium and long term. For instance, the size of the manufacturing sector, typically the key driver of export-led growth, halved between 1994 and today, which led to a deindustrialisation of the Palestinian economy. Developments in agriculture are very similar to those in manufacturing, with the size of the sector shrinking from 13 percent in 1994 to 6 percent today, and sector productivity halved. With the decline of both the agriculture and manufacturing sectors, the Palestinian economy’s capacity to expor t and compete in

foreign markets has significantly declined.

Fur thermore, private investment, which is essential for maintaining competitiveness, has been around 15 percent of the GDP over the last decade. This rate is very low compared to other comparator countries. A recent Investment Climate Assessment conducted by the World Bank in 2014 shows that the main reason Palestinian enterprises are not investing enough to maintain their competitiveness is because of political instability and the restriction system imposed by the government of Israel on trade, movement, and access. These restrictions result in high risks,

increased costs, and a fragmented Palestinian economic space.

In particular, restrictions on access to Area C are among the most detrimental to economic growth and investment. Area C represents 61 percent of the West Bank, and it is the most resource abundant space in the country. It is also the only contiguous land in the West Bank that connects 227 separate geographical areas classified as A and B. A World Bank study published in 2014 entitled “Area C and the Future of the Palestinian Economy” revealed that lifting restrictions on Area C could increase the size of the Palestinian economy by 35 percent, which would have a significant positive effect on living standards of Palestinians.

With the acknowledgment that political instability and restrictions top the list of major obstacles faced by the Palestinian private sector, it then follows that any lasting transformative steps towards reversing the current economic downturn must first address the political instability emanating from the conflict. While this often tops the list of high priority actions to generate positive impact on the Palestinian economy, it is also undoubtedly the most challenging.

In the absence of the political enablers necessary to reverse the distortionary effects of the political realities, several actions can be taken to mitigate the effects of political instability and to marginally facilitate growth – albeit limited – within the private sector.

While it is uncommon for global institutional investors to under take investments in the Palest in ian economy, several successful cases of multinational companies doing business here do exist. Additional investments in targeted sectors can be encouraged through more effective investment promotion activities. Official investment promotion agencies such as PIPA should play an increasingly prominent role in attracting FDI through regional campaigns and policy reforms; however, grassroots campaigns at the level of industry associations must also be nur tured and suppor ted. To fur ther encourage first movers considering new investments in the Palestinian market, the availability of risk mitigating mechanisms is key. Political risk insurance offered by the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), for example, has been actively deployed for several years, and the current programme is close to reaching its capacity. Efforts should be made by international institutions and development agencies to ensure that additional funding is made available to underwrite political risk coverage for potential future investments.

Work also needs to be done to enhance the legal and regulatory environment

Olive picking. Photo courtesy of ncpr.org.

Source: Palestine Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS)

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in the Palestinian territories that is currently deemed inadequate to attract the needed foreign and domestic investment. The current system of laws stems from various periods of Palestinian history and consists of layers of Ottoman, British Mandate, Jordanian, Egyptian, and Palestinian laws as well as Israeli military orders. This disparate group of laws leaves significant gaps and contains many internal inconsistencies. Thus, reforming the current collection of legislation governing business is critical to improving the investment climate.

While access to land in Area C may be subject to developments on the political front, current steps can be taken to facilitate a more efficient utilisation of resources in areas A and B. A dedicated government agency does exist to manage the land registration process; however, at the current rate of dispute resolution and registration procedure, it would take approximately 80 years to completely register all unregistered land in the West Bank. A more streamlined and less costly process for land surveying, dispute resolution, and registration in areas A and B would release significant assets and resources into the economic space, with related benefits to the financial sector through collateralised lending.

Access to finance is often dubbed as the lubricant for economic growth. Yet evidence shows some room for improvement on the issue of MSME access to finance in the Palestinian market, including the informal sector. As the main source of financing, the Palestinian banking sector is regarded as both stable and conservative, with the majority of its lending done through salary-backed personal loans rather than small business loans. In par ticular, small and informal firms appear to be significantly more constrained in obtaining credit when they need it compared to large firms. A recent enterprise survey indicates that 40 percent of large firms have a loan or access to a line of credit,

compared to only 4 percent among small firms, many of which repor t collateral requirements set for them at 200 percent of loan value. Greater access to finance for such firms should begin with supporting financial inclusion. Concrete steps may include greater support and development for non-bank financial institutions (e.g., leasing, insurance), the microfinance market, and addressing the collateral constraints, which seems to be the stumbling block for many micro and small businesses.

Reforming the education system so that it produces graduates well equipped with skills required by the private sector is also critical to increasing the productivity and competitiveness of Palestinian businesses. The Palestinian private sector consistently reports that it is unable to find workers with the skills that it needs. This is particularly a problem for exporters of high value added goods and services. If the Palestinian economy is going to integrate into world supply chains, it is critical that the education system prepare students for the modern workplace. Education must go beyond basic literacy and provide students with the high-level cognitive skills (such as analysis, problem solving, and communication) and behavioural skills required by competitive industries. This will require the PA to accelerate education reforms in the Palestinian territories.

In sum, removing restrictions currently imposed by the government of Israel on movement, access, and trade is considered a necessary condition for growing the Palestinian economy because it is the only way to reduce the current aid dependence and enable the private sector to become the real engine of sustainable growth. However, it is important to note that despite being necessary, the removal of restrictions will not be sufficient. Efforts also need to be conducted by the Palestinian Authority on multiple fronts such as enhancing investment-promotion activities, accelerating the process of land registration, improving access to finance, and implementing policies for aligning education and workforce development with economic development.

Nur Nasser Eddin is an economist at the World Bank. Prior to joining the bank, she held several positions in the private sector, the last of which was as head of the Investor Relations Unit at PADICO Holding. Nur holds a master’s degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Abdalwahab Khatib is a private-sector development specialist at the World Bank. Previously, he held the position of investment manager at Palestine Investment Fund. Abdalwahab holds a master’s degree from the University of Chicago.

An-Najah University, media room.

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After Gaza: Europe Scrambling to End Its Complicity

By Omar Barghouti

he “S” part of “BDS” was always thought to be quite distant and, logically, the last component of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement’s work that would materialise, after a critical mass of grassroots boycotts and institutional divestments. In 2014, talk about sanctions against Israel’s regime of occupation and oppression became far less taboo, even in Europe and the United States.

While still deeply complicit in enabling Israel’s occupation and grave violations of international law, the European Union (EU) has taken a number of measures lately that may indicate a growing appetite for sanctions against Israel for its failure to progress towards a “peaceful settlement” with the Palestinian Authority.

The Israeli daily Haaretz published a leaked EU document that discusses possible sanctions against Israel and against European companies involved in the construction and infrastructure of illegal Israeli colonial settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem. The document also calls for banning contact with Israeli settlers and public figures who reject the “two-state solution,” a measure that “could lead to a boycott of senior government ministers such as Naftali Bennett and Uri Ariel of Habayit Hayehudi, many Knesset members from Likud, and, even in extreme cases, President Reuven Rivlin.”

European diplomats explained the background of this talk of sanctions: “This is a sign that a great deal of anger and frustration exists in the member states. In recent months there were meetings of European

foreign ministers in which ministers, who are considered extremely close to Israel, spoke in the most critical way against the policies of Netanyahu’s government.”

Despite its denial, the US administration was rumoured to be considering targeted sanctions against Israel over its incessant construction of illegal colonies in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt).

Israel’s latest assault on Gaza, condemned as a “massacre” by Brazil’s president and even France’s foreign

minister, has exacerbated international public anger and has eaten fur ther into Israel’s already thinning support in European public opinion, more specifically. A former British deputy prime minister and former French prime minister openly called for sanctions. The deputy chairman of Germany’s second largest party called for an arms embargo on Israel, along with Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.

Even before Gaza, a 2014 BBC poll showed Israel competing with North Korea as the third- or fourth-worst-perceived country in the world in the opinion of a two-thirds majority across Europe. This is mainly due to Israel’s unmasked shift to the fanatic right as well as to the effectiveness of the Palestinian-led BDS movement.

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On November 7, the EU voted as a bloc in support of several UN resolutions upholding the rights of the Palestine refugees as stipulated in UN resolution 194 and condemning, among other violations, Israel’s settlements as an infringement of the Four th Geneva Convention.

A spate of resolutions by European parliaments recognising the “State of Palestine” has been seen by Israel as a clear indicator of official Europe’s frustration with Israel and wide discontent with its policies, in spite of the fact that this recognition falls well short of meeting the European states’ obligation to uphold the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, as I have argued elsewhere.

Seeing, however, how swiftly the EU adopted harsh sanctions against Russia for alleged violations of international law in Ukraine that pale in comparison to what Amnesty has described as Israel’s “war crimes” in Gaza and Jerusalem, one cannot but accuse Europe of sheer hypocrisy for still debating mild sanctions against Israel after decades of occupation, ethnic cleansing, and other serious human rights violations.

Far from reflecting a principled approach that consistently upholds human rights and international law, gradual European punitive measures against Israel mainly reflect the attrition of suppor t for Israel among European publics and the growing impact of the global, Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement at the grassroots and civil society levels.

For instance, a recent call on the EU to suspend its Association Agreement with Israel, the main mechanism of collaboration between the two sides, was signed by more than 300 European political parties, leading trade unions, and prominent NGOs for the first time ever.

Even before Gaza, a 2014 BBC poll showed Israel competing with North Korea as the third- or fourth-worst-perceived country in the world in the opinion of a two-thirds majority across Europe.

Much of Israel’s near pariah status among Europeans can be attributed to increased awareness of Israel’s crimes against the Palestinians, its political shift to the fanatic right, and effective BDS campaigning.

Begun in 2005 by the largest coalition of polit ical par ties, trade union federations, and mass organisations in Palestinian society, BDS calls for ending Israel’s 1967 occupation, ending its institutionalised racial discrimination, which fits the UN definition of apartheid, and upholding the right of Palestinian refugees to return to the homes and lands from which they were uprooted and dispossessed in 1948.

BDS was already perceived by Israel as a “strategic threat” well before the movement’s substantial growth in light of Israel’s latest intensification of its oppression against Palestinians. As a result of the steep human toll of Israel’s assault on Gaza and its unprecedented colonisation of the occupied West Bank, especially in and around East Jerusalem, BDS has witnessed an exceptional streak of qualitative successes.

Israel’s international isolation, which a White House official warned may become a “tsunami” if Israel failed to end its “occupations,” is predicted to escalate. With Secretary of State John Kerry’s mediation efforts spectacularly failing in the face of Israeli intransigence, a fresh Palestinian near-consensus has

emerged seeking to achieve basic Palestinian rights outside the framework of endless negotiations begun in Oslo two decades ago.

Indeed, Palestinians are f inding widespread international suppor t,

including at the grassroots level in the United States and Europe, to pressure Israel economically, academically, and otherwise to abide by international law and end its subjugation of Palestinians.

BDS has also started taking root in the

BDS poster.

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* An earlier version of this article was published on Middle East Eye.

Arab world. Kuwait was the first member of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to comply with the organisation’s decision, taken at the height of the Israeli assault on Gaza in August, to “impose political and economic sanctions on Israel, and boycott the corporations that operate in the colonial settlements built on occupied Palestinian territory.” The Kuwaiti ministry of trade and industry announced that it would no longer deal with 50 international companies and institutions that operate in settlements, a precedent-setting measure that is likely to have considerable repercussions on the viability of corporate involvement in settlements.

Five Latin American governments imposed various forms of diplomatic and trade sanctions, while the Bolivian president, Evo Morales, joined tens of leading Latin intellectuals and public figures in endorsing the boycott of Israel. The ruling Alliance of South Africa also explicitly adopted BDS.

Major European pension funds and banks have severed links with or withdrawn

i n v e s t m e n t s f r o m I s r a e l i companies and banks involved in the occupation.

SodaStream, an Israeli drinks manufacturer that produces in a settlement in the oPt, has finally decided to shut down its settlement factory after BDS pressure, along with other economic factors, led to a sharp decline in its stock price. In 2014, the George Soros Fund Management divested all its stock in SodaStream.

Corporations that are complicit in the Israeli occupation and denial of Palestinian rights started to feel the BDS heat in 2014. In the last few months a lone , t he Presby te r i an Church USA, one of the most important Protestant churches there, divested from three US companies involved in the Israeli occupation – Caterpillar, HP, and Motorola Solutions; the Gates Foundation divested its entire stake (more than $180 million) in the world’s largest security company, G4S, after an intense BDS campaign, while the pension fund of the United Methodist Church, the largest mainline Protestant church in the United States, decided to sell off all its G4S stock. G4S is experiencing major symbolic defeats due to BDS activism in Norway, South Africa, the European Parliament, several British universities, and elsewhere as a result of its involvement in Israeli prisons, where Palestinian prisoners, including children, are tortured, and in several projects that violate international law.

Israel’s crimes in Gaza and the fact that its offensive won the support of 95 percent of Jewish Israelis have fur ther eroded its suppor t among

younger liberal and progressive Jews worldwide. A recent poll by J Street, a largely stagnant Israel lobby group in the United States, revealed that 15 percent of Jewish Americans suppor t BDS against Israel. It also became considerably more tolerable for one-time Zionist thinkers to distinguish Israel from Judaism or to describe Zionism as a “xenophobic and exclusionary” ideology that is founded on “an untruth, on a myth, that Palestine was a country without a people,” as the former leading Israel lobbyist, Henry Siegman, puts it.

Max Blumenthal, a well-read Jewish American journalist, went as far as creating a #JSIL, standing for “Jewish State in the Levant.”

In a first, 327 Jewish Holocaust sur v ivors and descendants published a half-page ad in the New York Times under the slogan, “Never Again for Anyone!” calling for “the full economic, cultural and academic boycott of Israel.”

A call for a military embargo on Israel launched by six Nobel laureates and dozens of celebrities has been signed by tens of thousands. Amnesty International has built on its call for a military embargo on Israel by urging the US government to block a shipment of fuel destined for use by the Israeli military. Oxfam International has also issued a call for an end to arms sales to Israel.

Israel’s supporters in Hollywood reacted furiously when Oscar winners Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem, and Pedro Almodovar joined almost 100 other ar tists in Spain in severely condemning Israel’s assault on Gaza, with some producers “blacklisting” Cruz and Bardem, further indicating the rise of a new McCarthyism that uses unconditional support for Israel as

the ultimate test of loyalty.

More recently, Hollywood star Viggo Mor tensen condemned Israel’s “state terrorism.”

Heeding calls by the BDS movement to block Israeli ship operations at ports, dockworkers and community activists in Oakland, California, succeeded in preventing an Israeli ship from offloading for several consecutive days.

Par ticularly alarming to Israel is the fact that the boycott this time went well beyond Europe, reaching India, Turkey, South Africa, and even the captive economy of the occupied Palestinian territory. For the first time in decades, Palestinian consumers, businesses, and a number of municipalities joined a flood of effective popular boycotts against Israeli goods, despite the practical challenges posed by the occupation.

The uninterrupted rapid growth of BDS in mainstream circles over the last two years has caused an acute sense of urgency in Israel to up the ante of its efforts to crush the nonviolent human rights movement.

The growth of the BDS movement is starting to turn the tide against Israel’s regime of occupation, settler-colonialism, and apartheid, even among decision makers.

Israel may soon be facing its South Africa moment.

Omar Barghouti is a Palestinian human rights activist and co-founder of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement for Palestinian Rights.

Due to space limitations, the 71 footnotes from this article may only be found in the online edition of This Week in Palestine (http://thisweekinpalestine.com).

BDS poster.

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Decolonising the Palestinian Economies

By Nur Arafeh

s there a “Palestinian economy” or “distinct enclave economies”1? This article problematises the concept of “Palestinian economy” by arguing that there are at least six different economies in Palestine that co-exist with the Israeli economy. Nevertheless, as these economies are all subjugated to Israeli colonisation, decolonising them is a key common strategy to achieve real economic stimulus.

A de-developed2 and isolated economy in the Gaza Strip, under a strangling Israeli blockade

A major part of Palestinian economies is the economy of Gaza, which has been in an increasing state of de-development as a result of the eight-year Israeli-imposed blockade and the three assaults launched by Israel in 2008–2009, 2012, and 2014. Sea and land restrictions

have isolated Gaza’s economy from the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), and have heavily curbed Gaza’s foreign and internal trade. Closures and movement restrictions have also paralysed the agricultural, construction, fishing, and industrial sectors. More specifically, the so-called “dual-use” items’ list3 has decreased the availability of production inputs, increased their cost, and led some industries to either use inefficient mixes of inputs or drop product lines.4 Consequently, Gaza’s productive base and its private sector have been severely undermined. These destructive Israeli policies, combined with the depleted water, power, education, health, and other services facilities, have rendered Gaza unliveable by curbing its capacity to achieve sustainable economic growth and realise social change.

However, the Israeli siege has given rise to new kinds of economies in

Gaza. For instance, in reaction to Israeli restrictions on impor ts and exports, Gazans espoused new crop-planning models, such as the multi criteria crop-planning model. The goal was to produce crops that are normally imported in order to decrease dependency on imports, maximise the

There are a t leas t s ix economies in Palest ine that coexist with the Israeli economy: a de-developed e c o n o m y i n G a z a ; a marginalised economy in East Jerusalem; a neoliberal economy in Ramallah; an economy “on the sideline” in Area C; a southern West Bank economy that is becoming the industrial and commercial centre of the oPt; and an economy in the nor thern West Bank that is developing interactions with the Arab economy in the Galilee and the Triangle. Despite the distinctive characteristics of each of these economies, however, they are all sapped by Israel’s colonisation and occupa t ion . As a result, a genuine economic boost would only happen by deco lon is ing these economies.

Photo by Mohamad Zarandah.

Photo courtesy of electronicintifada.net.

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use of local resources, and achieve food-security and self-sufficiency in the long run. An “agricultural resistive economy”5 thus emerged in Gaza.6

An informal tunnel economy has also developed and has been, until recently, Gaza’s main engine of economic survival and growth. Tunnel trade decreased Gaza’s dependency on the Israeli economy and thus gave Gaza the main authority over imported goods. In 2009, the Hamas government sought to formalise this economy by creating a Tunnel Affairs Commission (TAC) that became the regulatory authority for commercial activities. However, this kind of smuggling trade did not generate sustainable growth: markets became saturated with supply exceeding demand, and tunnel trade did not have large benefits on labour-intensive and productive sectors.7 Moreover, tunnel activity was met with a severe Egyptian crackdown in mid-2013, and has thus aggravated the socio-economic and humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

A marginalised and withering economy in East Jerusalem

East Jerusalem was the commercial, transport, tourism, and cultural heart of the Palestinian nation. However, it has been gradually separated from the economies of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and has been

integrated into the Israeli economy, in a partial and distorted way. It has thus become increasingly dependent on Israeli markets for employment, trade, and finance. This marginalisation of East Jerusalem’s economy was caused by the Israeli pernicious policies of annexation, isolation, and externalisation, especially through the construction of the apartheid Wall. As a result, socio-economic conditions have been in precipitous decline. Palestinians have been suffering from very high poverty and unemployment rates (75 percent8 and 17.6 percent,

respectively); acute housing deficiency; lack of investment and economic infrastructure; a depleted commercial sector; a tourism sector that falls behind its potential; and dilapidated educational and health services.

The distinct economies in the fragmented archipelago of the West Bank

While the Gaza Str ip and East Jerusalem were both economically marginalised and isolated, a neoliberal economy was being developed in Ramallah. The neoliberal economic-development model implemented by the government of Salam Fayyad included institution building; increasing attempts to privatise and reduce interest rates and inflation; a surge in personal debt; growing inequality; endless openings of Western cafés, bars, etc. While a period of economic growth ensued, however, the latter was illusionary and unsustainable since it was based on an artificial, donor-dependent economy. Moreover, “growth” was far from being equitable, since it was mainly taking place in areas A and B of the West Bank, whereas Area C remained off-limits for Palestinian development. In fact, Israel’s restrictions on access to Palestinian land, water, mines, and quarries in Area C have created an economy that has been completely sidelined.

In opposition to the economies of Ramallah and Area C, Hebron and the southern West Bank have increasingly become the commercial and industrial heart of the oPt. Moreover, whereas consumerism and materialism largely characterise Ramallah nowadays, the southern West Bank is still known for its strong communal and social cohesion, which could be the foundation for building a stronger economy.

Meanwhile, new economic “nor th-north” relations and trade flows are developing between the economies in the northern West Bank (Nablus,

Jenin, Tubas, and Qalqilya) and the Arab economy in the Triangle and Galilee localities. These new economic interactions involve the hotel, tourism, and restaurants sector; the retail trade sector; the professional services sector, especially health services; financial, accounting, and legal services; and transit transport services. It is estimated that the total current value of goods and services purchased from northern West Bank markets by Palestinians living in Israel amounts to NIS 1.1 billion annually. Palestinians in Israel are thus becoming a significant engine of the northern West Bank’s economy.9

Decolonising the Palestinian economies: the role of the agricultural and industrial sectors

Given that there are several Palestinian economies, is there a single strategy to boost them?

While it is very problematic to think of a “one-size-fits-all” strategy, one should note that all these economies are subjugated to Israel’s occupation and colonisation, and all of them are dependent on the Israeli economy, albeit in different ways. Furthermore, they have all been strangled by the same Israeli hermetic system of physical, insti tut ional, and administrative impediments. The apartheid Wall, fixed and flying checkpoints, earth mounds, trenches, permit requirements, etc., have all had deleterious effects on the movement of persons/workers and goods within the oPt as well as to/through Israel. In other words, Palestinian economies are confronting the same dynamics: constrained access to natural and economic resources; restraints on the transpor tation of goods; limitations on investment and infrastructure development; and mobility restrictions throughout the oPt. These Israeli movement and access restrictions, combined with labour-market fragmentation and the on-going process of exclusion, have

Tunnel trade economy in Gaza.

Photo by George Azar.

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1 “Strengthening Trade and Economic Interaction between Palestinians in the West Bank and inside Israel: an Arab “Nor th-Nor th” Alternative to Israelization,” Raja Khalidi, 2015. Unpublished.

2 The Gaza Strip: The Political Economy of De-Development, Sara Roy, 1995.

3 According to Israeli claims, “dual-use” items are products that can be used for military purposes in addition to civilian ones.

4 “The Economic Costs of the Israeli Occupation for the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” The Applied Research Institute Jerusalem, 2011.

5 The term was coined by the Ministry of Agriculture.6 “A multi criteria crop planning model based on the

‘Resistive Economy’ characterizing the Situation in Gaza Strip,” Salah R. Agha, 8th International Conference on Islamic Economics and Finance, 2011.

7 “Gaza’s Tunnel Phenomenon: The Unintended Dynamics of Israel’s Siege,” Nicolas Pelham, 2012, Journal of Palestine Studies, 41 (4).

8 “East Jerusalem 2014 – By the numbers,” Association for Civil Rights in Israel, 2014, http://www.acri.org.il/en/2014/05/24/ej-numbers-14/#f2.

9 Khalidi, 2015. 10 Ibid.

sapped Palestinian economies and stymied sustainable economic growth and development in the oPt.

Thinking within this framework, the decolonisation of Palestinian economies becomes the key to achieving a real economic boost. There is thus an urgent need to conceptualise and implement a counter-hegemonic strategy that resists Israeli colonisation and its hegemonic power structures, and that defies the neoliberal model adopted by the PNA. More specifically, the cornerstone of this strategy should be to resist land occupation and dependency on the Israeli economy.

The promotion of the agricultural sector would be crucial in this regard, since it has a strategic role in maintaining Palestinian land and water under the use of Palestinians. Moreover, enhancing the agricultural sector would foster Palestinian productive capacity and disengage it from the stranglehold of the Israeli economy. It would thus facilitate the transformation of Palestinian society from a consumerist to a productive one, and ensure the achievement of food security. Fur thermore, as a labour-intensive sector, agriculture has the ability to generate jobs, especially for those who cannot work in other sectors

because of lack of education and skills.

The industrial sector should also be enhanced in order to foster local production and achieve self-sufficiency and self-reliance. Hence, in the short term, we should focus on promoting industries that are the most profitable socially and economically. In other words, we should expand competitive industries that create employment and produce goods that use inputs that are the least dependent on the Israeli market. Industrial expansion would also increase the demand of technical skills (engineering, chemistry, physics, etc.), and thus create job opportunities in disciplines that currently face a lack of demand in the Palestinian labour market.

Boycotting Israeli goods and deepening trade links between Palestinian economies

The suppression of the flow of goods between Palestinian and Israeli markets is equally impor tant to boost the Palestinian economies and develop their productive capacity. The boycott of all Israeli goods (not only those produced in Israeli settlements) is also crucial to protect local products, raise

their competitiveness, and increase the cost of Israel’s occupation and apar theid system. Needless to say, the boycott of the colonising power’s products is a moral duty that should be upheld by all Palestinians.

The promotion of “nor th-nor th” relations is also essential to resist integration into the Israeli economy. The PNA, local communities, and the private sector should play a crucial role in this regard by giving preferential treatment to Palestinian investors; developing trade fairs to foster trade and investment links; improving municipal services for Palestinian visitors from Israel; organising awareness campaigns about Palestinians in Israel and those in the West Bank to address the misconceptions they have of each other and to fill the leadership gap between the two areas, etc.10 Equally important is the strengthening of economic links between the economies of the West Bank on the one hand, and those in the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, on the other hand.

Finally, it is wor th noting that for resistance to be impactful, it should tackle the issue of incentives (motivating people to get involved), and should be

based on people’s consciousness and awareness of the dangers of living under colonised economies. Attention should thus be given to education, capacity-building, and social mobilisation. As Paulo Freire eloquently argued in Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970), “education either functions as an instrument which is used to facilitate integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and bring about conformity or it becomes the practice of freedom, the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world.”

Nur Arafeh is an assistant researcher at the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS) and a visiting lecturer at Al-Quds Bard Honors College. She has a dual BA degree in political science and economics from Sciences Po University (France) and Columbia University (USA), and holds an MPhil degree in development studies from the University of Cambridge (UK).

Palestinian farmers from Gaza.

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One Bank’s Journey in Supporting SMEs

Courtesy of Bank of Palestine

he competitive and productive capacity of the Palestinian economy was affected by several factors during the last decade, including most notably, shrinking economic activities and low economic performance. The dependence of the Palestinian economy on Israel has further impeded economic development and limited economic productivity. Israel provides the Palestinian economic sector with raw material and machinery, and facilitates marketing Palestinian products, thus deepening Palestinian economic dependence on Israel, without which the Palestinian economy would remain dysfunctional and inoperative.

Bank of Palestine acknowledges that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of the Palestinian economy. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), there were135,401 micro and small enterprises at the end of 2013. In addition,

other enterprises not registered in the Chambers of Commerce and official institutions constitute 90 percent of the total number of enterprises operating in Palestine. Accordingly, the Palestinian economy can achieve progress through focusing on productive sectors in par ticular. Fur thermore, a strategic vision needs to be in place in order to strengthen the role of SMEs as well as contribute to multi-dimensional development within the entire structure of Palestinian society. The furtherance of small and medium enterprises will eventually increase the Palestinian economy’s pace of development and enable it to rely on its own limited financial and human resources. As a result, dependency on Israel will be reduced and the production of goods and the operating needs of the local market will be more or less met.

Notwithstanding the obstacles faced by the Palestinian economic sector, Bank of Palestine as a chief contributor to the development of the Palestinian economy has drawn up policies and laid foundations to support SMEs on different levels. The past few years have witnessed a considerable increase in the demand for banking products and services. The rising number of university

graduates combined with accelerated technological developments have promoted the establishment of small enterprises, especially for young graduates who could not get jobs in the government and/or private sectors. Many of the enterprises focused on creating technological solutions for social needs that necessitated the search for extra support and funding. Between 2010 and 2014, the number of small enterprises increased by more than 41 percent and the value of credit facilities to this segment grew by 90 percent. Though indicators confirm that small enterprises have achieved tangible development, more effort needs to be exerted so that they can become a primary symbol for economic and social development.

The Palestinian Monetary Authority (PMA) has recent ly created an advanced information centre to strengthen the small- and medium-enterprise sector, and serve lending parties by providing comprehensive and updated information about the projects. The centre also serves the new loan projects by facilitating the loan processes and expanding credit facilities provided to small and medium enterprises and enabling them to expand their activities and products. Such entities are defined as companies or enterprises with annual turnover of less than US$ 7 million and 25 employees or less.

Bank of Palestine suppor ts small enterprises, and to this end it has prepared a comprehensive strategy to reduce poverty and unemployment and increase productivity. By the end of November 2014, Bank of Palestine’s portfolio of credit facilities to SMEs reached US$ 203 million. Available

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statistics pointed out that the grand total of credit facilities of the Palestinian banking sector to SMEs amounted to around US$ 490 million by the end of 2013, an indication that Bank of Palestine’s contributions to support small and micro enterprises represent a high percentage of the banking sector’s contribution to economic development. Moreover, studies have shown that a lack of adequate funding and the complicated procedures of registration and licensing are the main obstacles that hamper the growth and development of small and medium enterprises.

Bank of Palestine has also organised special programmes to empower Palestinian women so that they can actively engage in economic life and improve the living conditions of their communities. Now, through independent and productive small enterprises, Palestinian women are contributing to the gradual development of the Palestinian economy, enabling it to cope with the changing political, economic, and social conditions.

Bank of Palestine has launched development programmes to support Palestinian women. The bank held a series of workshops for groups of women in major Palestinian cities to develop their banking and financial knowledge, and introduce them to the procedures required for growing their business through access to banking products and services. The programmes also aim to raise women’s awareness on the selection of products and programmes suitable for them, and on how to collect sufficient information to avoid risks and help in economic and social growth. The bank has also made significant contributions to suppor t women’s participation in commercial exhibitions to promote and market their products. Palestinian women own only 2 percent of enterprises, but women have administrative or par tnership roles in 7 percent of enterprises. On the other hand, women’s contributions to

some small enterprises in partnership with men are not counted as par t of the production output, which in fact diminishes the economic rights of women. But Bank of Palestine continuously seeks to highlight the economic rights of Palestinian women.

The bank has continuously sought to support small enterprises, ensure their continuity, and provide them with required needs so that they can have apositive impact on the economy. The bank has always been keen on developing the expertise of project owners and providing them with consultations, and advisory services, and technical skills. The bank provides project owners with non-financial advisory services to enable them to work more easily and professionally. The more a project becomes successful and productive, the more it contributes to economic development as a whole.

With regard to supporting ambitious youth with innovative ideas, Bank of Palestine cofounded the Innovation Fund - Palestine, which is a US$ 10 million for-profit, venture capital fund modeled and based on the accumulated experience in the developing and developed world in creating and nu r t u r i ng t he ecosys t em f o r entrepreneurship and innovation. The bank has invested US$1 million in the fund. Other investors include Palestinian institutions and Palestinian individuals in Palestine and in the diaspora. The objective of the Innovation Fund - Palestine is to invest in Palestinian early-stage innovative ventures (focusing on high-tech and ICT sectors) that, through active participation of the fund managers and a network of experienced mentors, lead to successful results and enable companies to grow and create returns to investors. The effects of this fund will go beyond the hoped-for returns to investors and will positively impact the Palestinian economy and create hundreds of employment oppor tunities for young Palestinian university graduates.

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The First National Export Strategy of the State of PalestineTowards Export-led Prosperity, Made in the State of Palestine

By Hanan Taha

n Palestine’s cumbersome way to independence, many strategy papers have been developed to build capacities to run, manage, and govern the Palestinian state and suppor t state building based on private-sector-led growth. The most significant document in this regard is the National Development Plan (NDP) for Palestine,

a triennial national plan for integrated planning and budgeting, a comprehensive, coherent, participatory, and

results-based approach, and public-private-sector cooperation. The NDP, as other strategies endorsed at the national level, usually assigns responsibilities to the public sector alone. The recent endorsement of the Palestinian National Export Strategy (NES) marks a turning point in this approach. Not only is the NES the first document that clearly identifies actions to be taken for the Palestinian exporting sectors, priority sectors, assigned responsibilities, and expected cost for each activity for the upcoming five years; the strategy is also unique because, for the first time, the methodology was shifted to equal responsibility of both the public and private sectors to engage in developing, endorsing, and implementing an export strategy for the State of Palestine.

Thanks to the generous contribution of the European Union (EU) and the Council of Ministers’ decision to officially begin developing the NES document, the NES Higher Steering Committee was formed in 2012, consisting of 18 private and 18 public members that represent a total of 27 institutions in the private and public sectors. The underlying concept was to develop an export strategy based on identifying priority sectors, specific actions to be taken, responsibilities, time frames,

and detailed budgeting. In addition, the vision of the NES was identified in order to set the overall direction of the export strategy and capture its spirit: Export-led prosperity, made in the State of Palestine. The vision is supported by four national strategic objectives: a) to promote a dynamic business environment enabled by a policy and regulatory environment to suppor t innovation and investment in the export sector; b) to build the capacities of the exporting sector to diversify and penetrate the international market; c) to maximise the contribution of exports to socioeconomic development through enhanced export competitiveness; and

d) to build and promote the image of the State of Palestine as a supplier of value-added quality products and services.

The priority sectors identified in NES are stone and marble, olive oil, agro-processed meat, fresh fruits/vegetables/herbs, textiles and garments, footwear and leather, furniture, tourism, and information communication and technology. The strategies developed for each of these sectors complement the NES priority cross-sector functions, i.e., a) trade facilitation and logistics, b) quality management, c) access to finance, and d) trade information.

The benefits of the strategy will be realised as expor ters learn how to benefit from existing trade agreements,

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meet quality and standards regulations, target new markets, and finally develop their competitiveness in the regional and international markets. In numbers, the implementation of NES and the priority sector studies is expected to increase exports by around 67 percent between 2014 and 2018, resulting in an increase in Palestine’s exports by approximately US$ 722 million. US$ 483 million therefrom will be generated from the priority NES sectors, and the export of services (from priority NES sectors) only will increase by US$ 239 million. Not only will Palestine’s economy witness a steady growth in expor ts, but the implementation of the NES will also further increase employment, gender mainstreaming, and regional integration, all of which will lead to improved standards of living and economic growth.

The Palest in ian Expor t Council is composed of 26 members from the public and private sectors, as well as academia, and headed by the minister of National Economy and chairman of Palestine Trade Center-PalTrade as vice president. For more information on the council, please contact PalTrade.

The NES document is only the beginning. To achieve the vision laid out by the NES, a concer ted effor t needs to be undertaken on a variety of fronts by all NES stakeholders. The effective contribution of the NES to expor t development will largely depend on the ability of the State of Palestine to plan, mobilise resources, coordinate activities, and monitor their implementation through unified efforts by public and private stakeholders.

Another key step to guarantee the sustainability and implementation of the NES is the integration of the various donor plans’ with the NES Plan of Action (POA).

Finally, for the NES to progress from the design phase to the implementation phase, the following key areas of intervention need to be targeted: First

of all, it is impor tant to secure the commitment of donors in general and the EU in par t icular to the vision of the NES and to providing the needed requirements to fully implement the strategy. International experience in export-strategy design and management indicates that early targeted suppor t should focus on building and reinforcing implementation-management capacities. Therefore, immedia te suppor t shou ld be provided to implement priority actions identified in the POA, including through supporting the framework institution for the implementation of the NES, the Palestinian Export Council.

The Palestinian Export Council (PEC) is a formal public-private platform that is composed of 26 members from the public and private sectors and academia, headed by the minister of National Economy and chairman of Palestine Trade Center (PalTrade) as vice president, and supported by the PEC secretariat, which is mandated for and managed by PalTrade. The PEC will ensure that the broad range of activities identified within the NES, along with the complex nature of integrated interventions, are implemented in a careful manner, that resources are directed efficiently, and that results are frequently monitored. The PEC will further facilitate the formulation and endorsement of strategies and policies for export development, e.g., through specialised committees. In addition, in order to avoid the fragmentation of development efforts, the PEC will ensure that existing development efforts, both national and donor driven, do not occur in isolation, but instead are aligned with

the State of Palestine’s needs in the broader context of export growth for socioeconomic development.

The PEC will support the visibility of the NES in all future national development frameworks and make sure that it receives adequate, coordinated, and long-term funding from international and national, public and private stakeholders.

In a nutshel l , implementat ion-management support will enable the implementation of the NES based on unified public and private efforts, and therefore is the first step toward achieving the NES export objectives.

Hanan Taha is the CEO of PalTrade, a non-profit organisation that has evolved into an export development organisation for the implementation of a National Export Strategy for Palestine. Mrs. Taha has more than eighteen years of professional experience working in the Palestinian private sector. She earned a bachelor’s degree in modern management/administration from Cambridge Tutorial College and another bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering.

Article photos courtesy of PalTrade.

By Patricia Abbott and H.E. Izzat Abdulhadi

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Value Adding and Speciality MarketsWhy Maftoul Really Matters

spects of Palestinian society can be defined as traditional. Equally, a defining Palestinian quality is the ability to recognise

the need for change and to self-drive change. This integration of tradition and innovation is part of Palestine’s national character, culture, and psyche.

A highly influential example of this combination of responsiveness, tradition, and culture is found in the work of economists George T. Abed and Yusuf Sayigh.

Working from the late 1970s, Abed and Sayigh analysed the impact of the occupation on Palestine’s economy and development prospects.

The intention of the occupation was to systematically deplete the economy and make Palestinians beggars in their own land. Addressing the effects of the occupation within the limits of what was possible would be central to achieving the goal of self-determination. Sumud Muqawim was born as a responsive concept of steadfastness and resistance that incorporated economic and social development. Palestine’s political framework began to be transformed from static endurance of the occupation to actively working to overcome its worst effects.

In 2015, the argument that economic development is necessary for self-determination is accepted wisdom. Equally, the restrictions placed on Palestine by Israel are now structural obstacles to a flourishing broad-based Palestinian economy. Daily experience and economic analysis show that Palestine’s economy cannot reach its full potential without the removal of Israel’s restrictions, which is not within Palestine’s power to effect.

Two examples of what may be the most damaging of these obstacles are goods-movement restrictions and dual-use product designations. Goods-movement restrictions can add up to 50 percent additional costs to the handling and transpor t of Palestinian goods. Dual-use product designation specifies items that have the potential to be used harmfully, and limits their availability. This applies

Pa l e s t i n e ’ s s p e c i a l i t y i n d u s t r i e s e m b o d y Palest in ian cul ture and have unrealised economic potential. Their unrealised potential lies in high-end or niche markets where the qualities of limited availability and traditional production methods, localisation, and cultural authenticity are highly valuable.

Realising this economic potential depends upon a reframing of the industries. The Palestinian capacity for innovation and change can drive this re-framing and strengthen the profitability and viability of these unique industries and their products.

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to items as basic as glycerine and hydrogen peroxide, which are needed for normal production processes.

Considering the very real and on-going economic limitations caused by the occupation, the question that arises is, Where do Palestine’s current economic assets and potentials lie?

The most recent comprehensive PNA trade analysis, Assisting Palestinian Independence through Trade , identified Palestine’s assets as a youthful, highly educated workforce, low wages, and a small number of speciality industries that produce a limited number of unique products. The repor t, which looked at how existing assets can be maximised, noted that unrealised economic potential lies in exploiting these assets, particularly through the export of high value-added goods.i

One critically important asset is not on the list: Palestine’s monopoly over Palestinian and Made in Palestine,

wh i ch a r e f as t becoming a high-

value international brand. This asset

b e l o n g s t o a l l Palestinian industries

and is of particularly high value for speciality

or traditional industries that embody and express

Pa les t in ian l i f e and culture.

Recognising the assets that do exist, more difficult

questions arise: Why is this high-value potential not being

realised? and How can it be realised?

One reason may be tha t Palestine’s speciality industries

and their products are not being viewed from the perspective most

likely to recognise and maximise their unique value. The dominant frameworks for understanding economic growth and its limits within Palestine focus on production-side growth. In production-side economic approaches, economic growth is created through the expansion of production. Income is increased through earnings that come from expanded production. Limit ing and lowering costs is essential to providing products as cheaply as possible within large markets.

Within Palestine, however, Israel’s restrictions limit production and increase costs. Palestinian products, which are then more expensive, simply cannot compete in a mass market. Until the restrictions imposed by Israel are removed, production-side growth within Palestine will remain limited.

Realising the potential of the assets that Palestine does have requires a completely different perspective, a demand-side framework. A demand-side approach views and values an industry from the perspective of

where its products have the most value. These places are the markets where demand is created.

High-value, value-adding, speciality, and niche marketing are all demand-side approaches. In these frameworks and markets, the things that are considered to be disadvantages in large-scale production-side economic approaches and markets – e.g., limited production and availability, small enterprises, localisation, uniqueness, and labour-intensive production – are highly valuable. The highest economic value of these qualities, in combination with the Made in Palestine brand, can be realised by targeting these products into niche or speciality markets that lie mainly outside of Palestine.

Realising this value, however, requires a conceptual re-framing of Palestine’s speciality industries. The re-framing required is potentially revolutionary, as it situates the economic gain that can be made from and for things that are uniquely Palestinian, outside of Palestine.

When looking at experiences of the transformation of depressed industries into high-value industries, it is common to find scepticism and resistance before the changes take place. After the changes have taken place, they are seen as common sense. “Of course we had to do it. It was either that or see the industry die,” is a normal comment afterward.

In Australia, one example of the move from economic decline to a high-value, demand-side economic approach is the Victorian Shire of Baw Baw. The shire is located relatively close to the state capital of Melbourne and is a rural area with a large dairy industry that produces up to 20 percent of Victoria’s milk. Subjected to growing urban pressure for land, returns from traditional agriculture were falling and markets were changing. The local economy

was declining and economic options were seen as limited.

Working with the state government, business organisations, and federal government bodies that provide international facilitation, Baw Baw Shire has transformed its economic framework. What was failing is now thriving and what were disadvantages are now advantages. Localisation, lack of diversity, and small enterprises are now high-value specialities of limited production, organic, rural purity, and authenticity, and are marketed accordingly. By selling in markets where these qualities are valuable, transport and production costs, which would be prohibitive, are absorbed. Products are now viable and in most cases, more viable than before.

Palestine’s speciality industries include traditional industries and industries that produce goods unique to Palestine. One example that shows the benefit of speciality and high-value marketing, both of which are demand-side economic approaches, is maftoul. Maftoul is uniquely Palestinian yet it is being popularised in Australia and New Zealand as Israeli couscous.

Israeli couscous is being marketed in gourmet food stores through suppliers and in restaurants as a speciality Israeli product. The product is accompanied by a range of promotional activities, including use by famous chefs, which firmly establish it as a highly desirable speciality food product, and as Israeli in origin.

Israeli couscous is not being sold into the broad-range consumption market. In this kind of market, the quantity of product in relationship to price is the most significant determiner of value and purchase. The marketing targets high-end, high-status consumption, where a limited quantity of the product commands a premium price.

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i http://www.hebroninvestment.com/pdf/STUDIES/Foriegn%20Trade/assisting%20palestine%20Through%20Tade.pdf, p. 23.

ii http://unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/ldc2012_en.pdf

iii http://aid.dfat.gov.au/australia-awards/pages/fellowships.aspx

Laughter is one possible response to this reality. A shrug of the shoulders accompanied by “What can be done?” is another.

However, as clearly as water is stolen from Palestine under Israel’s occupation and as the value of the water is lost to Palestine and transferred to Israel, the selling of maftoul as Israeli couscous takes the value of a uniquely Palestinian product and transfers it to Israel. The dollar value of the loss is not as easily quantified as it is for an immediately tangible asset such as water, yet the loss is real, and it is significant.

In addition, this is more than an economic loss. It constitutes cultural loss because of the dispossession that occurs through claiming and selling what is Palestinian as brand Israel, with all the cultural value being passed to Israel.

Nabulsi olive oil soap is another example of a highly marketable

Palestinian speciality product. With only three Nablus factories lef t that produce soap according to traditional methods, Nabulsi soap could command niche prices in speciality markets.

In Canberra, Australia, anecdotal reports from local marketers indicate multiple requests for Palestinian hand-made olive oil soap. In these markets, hand-made soaps are selling for $7.00 for less than 100 grams. With its unique and valuable qualities and with further value added through packaging and marketing, Nabulsi soap could command far higher prices. Its authenticity and limited availability, in combination with brand Palestine, are highly valuable, and there are no disadvantages.

Palestinian products suitable for value-added speciality export and marketing should have a long shelf life or be non-perishable, relatively compact, and physically robust. Products should be

able to be enhanced and tailored for the market through additions such as packaging. When products are marketed in this way as speciality or niche items with a high dollar value, costs such as transport can be fully absorbed.

In changing to a value-added framework for expor t, the most foundational aspects of success are knowledge and understanding of the target market and the ability to bridge the divides between the producing country and the market country.

A r o u n d t h e w o r l d , d i a s p o r a communities are a major pathway through which markets have been developed for home-country speciality products. Diaspora communities have the initial knowledge required to cross the geographical, cultural, and economic divides. Diaspora communities are often best placed to build the partnerships needed to ensure fair profits within the producing country and the market country.ii

Within Australia, assistance is available for the development of Palestinian exper tise through the Australian Award Fellowships, funded by the Depar tment of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Fellowships provide generous financial support for professional development and high-quality training in Australia. Priority fellowship areas are trade facilitation and international competitiveness. Palestinians are able to travel to Australia and train with Australian organisations and businesses to develop skills, knowledge, and professional networks.iii

Palestine’s speciality industries should be high-earning jewels in the crown of Palestine’s economy and culture. Reframed through approaches that value their unique product qualities where they can earn the highest return, these industries can be viable and profitable into the long-term. This reframing can also point a way toward the development of a high-value economy where Palestine’s other unrealised asset, a highly-

educated and young workforce, is critical to success.

With Palestine’s natural capacity for innovation and change, this is an economic and cultural opportunity that stands waiting, and it is a challenge and potential transformation that is almost as revolutionary as that of Abed and Sayigh.

Patricia Abbott is a former consultant to the General Delegation of Palestine to Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific and is currently working as a freelance writer.

Izzat Abdulhadi is head of the General Delegation of Palestine to Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.

Traditional soap factory in Nablus. Photo from Palestine Image Bank.

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Coca-Cola Factory in Gaza

A Path towards a Vibrant Economy

By Imad Hindi

ur journey was not an easy one in a place crippled by challenges and impediments. The fact that the National Beverage Company Coca-Cola/Cappy (NBC) was able to get a franchise from Coca-Cola International and start working locally, in 1998, with clarity of vision and according to international standards, is the best proof

that the Palestinian market has promise and is safe for investment despite the sustained state of turmoil imposed

on the region.

Empowered with the spirit of leadership and with self-confidence, skill, and talent, NBC has worked with partners on the ground to expand its supply chain from city to city and village to village in the West Bank, with a long-term hope but firm eye on operating in Gaza. This hope has recently begun to materialise as NBC has started to build a new factory in Gaza. In pursuit of this mission, we have considered all the relevant issues and prepared for all possible worst-case scenarios. We are fully aware that the economic situation in Gaza has become more challenging due to the consequences of the continuous siege and blockade, as well as the wars against Gaza, particularly the last onslaught during the summer of 2014.

In addition to unbearable human losses, the latest war on Gaza took an equal toll on the livelihood of Palestinians. The Palestinian Federation of Industries confirmed that a total of 134 factories were destroyed, resulting in the immediate unemployment of thousands of labourers who once worked tirelessly in Gaza’s productive factories. The food-and-beverage sector was drastically affected by this interruption of production.

Gaza had once upon a time enjoyed productive, thriving agricultural and industrial sectors. As a result of the continued siege, however, the situation is becoming more challenging as its industrial base and economic stamina diminish. Industry today in the Gaza Strip no longer contributes to the overall GDP at levels of 2005, which stood at 35 percent, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. The World Bank indicates that the industrial sector’s contribution has continued to decline, pushing down economic growth in Gaza from 8 percent in 2007–2010, to 1.9 percent in 2013, reaching a low ebb of -1 percent during the first quarter of 2014.

Today NBC is looking forward to challenging this reality and sparking a sense of hope through making a tangible contribution to the Gaza economy – the establishment of a Gaza-based Coca-Cola factory.

There is an important mission ahead of us. NBC, as a private-sector entity, has a role in stimulating economic growth, creating jobs, and contributing to poverty reduction, which reached 60 percent after the systematic destruction of the Strip’s economic and industrial base after this past summer’s war on Gaza. NBC has fortunately been able to

break through the siege and curfews to continue to supply Gaza with its high-quality products – soda, soft drinks, and water – and employ tactics to expand its supply chain there. NBC plans to create a new economic reality in Gaza, one that will rise from the midst of the rubble of destroyed factories.

We hope that this new productive operation wil l eventual ly create thousands of direct and indirect job opportunities in a community that is plagued by very high unemployment (more than 38.5 percent during the fourth quarter of 2013, to a high of 40.8 percent during the first quarter of 2014, and an even more alarming rate of 45 percent in the second quarter, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics).

With the support of its shareholders, NBC rented a building in the industrial area of Gaza two years ago to allow this investment in the production facility to materialise. US$ 20 million

The latest war on Gaza caused the immedia te unemployment of thousands of labourers who once worked tirelessly in Gaza’s productive factories. Gaza’s new Coca-Cola factory will effectively employ over 300 people once the three phases are concluded, and this could create 3,000 indirect job opportunities.

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of investments will be pumped into the plant to allow its completion in three phases, in spite of the arduous process to obtain permission to take required machinery into Gaza.

We are eagerly hoping to initiate the first phase of operation in August 2015, an event that will mark the culmination of the support of all friends and partners who have joined forces to make this possible. At this early stage, the Coca-Cola factory will produce carbonated soft drinks using returnable glass bottling as par t of the production line. This environmentally conscious decision will reduce CO2 emissions and save energy, utilising the most environmentally friendly containers, which will hopefully blend with the local environment as we attempt to focus on providing Gaza’s people with urgently needed jobs. It is estimated that during this stage, the factory will create 120 direct jobs and approximately 1,200 indirect jobs.

Phase two will witness the introduction of a new production line: the PET Line (polyethylene terephthalate). It will bring to bear added operational efficiency and more optimised production at the new Coca-Cola factory in Gaza. The last phase will see yet another production

line: the canning line. In addition to enhanced operational efficacy, the new lines will also increase the workforce. By the end of phase three, the factory will realise a total of 300 direct jobs and another 3,000 indirect jobs.

We are aware that this is a humble contribution when compared to the huge unemployment reality in Gaza and the absence of basic necessities for a decent life. In spite of this, however, we see the Coca-Cola factory as a precursor to attracting additional local and international investments in Gaza’s economy, which will revive hope and change realities for the people of Gaza.

In keeping with its environmental goals, the factory will also add a 5-liter water line. Water is a scarce resource in Gaza. The Strip faces serious hardships, foremost among them is access to clean water. This water line will aim to provide segments of Gaza’s population with clean water and will form part of our continuous efforts to support the Gaza community. Community engagement remains high on our agenda. The company has donated $120,000 to UNRWA as par t of its efforts to support displaced Gazans who took shelter at UNRWA schools. Our contribution includes Arwa mineral-

water bottles and other soft drinks.

Our investment in Gaza carries wi th in i t the hal lmarks of a deep commitment that is more developmental and social than purely commercial. It is a long-term strategy that aims to boost the economy in a place that suffers from continuous aggression, curfews, and siege.

Looking at the world’s most developed countries, we noticed the complementary relationship between human development and economic growth and the way all entities work towards the society’s general welfare. The UNDP used an index that combined various indicators to measure the well-being of countries, namely, life expectancy, quality schooling and education, and gross national income per capita for the standard of living.

Taking into account these world t rends, NBC bel ieves in the essential role of the private sector, governmental institutions, and human efforts in collectively building the economy. NBC is therefore investing not only in physical infrastructure but also in human

NBC started in 1998 with 47 employees and one plant in Ramallah. It now employs over 410 people in its 3 plants and 4 branches in the West Bank and Gaza.

infrastructure by helping to create platforms to educate and empower the young generation. NBC will assume a renewed role in Gaza that is parallel to its role in the implementation of its West Bank programmes in human development.

It is therefore evident that NBC’s mission is a mission for life, dignity, and hope. NBC is looking forward to expanding its production in Gaza: offering its product line of clean water, juices, and other non-carbonated products as well as helping to create jobs.

NBC is aware that without investments and business expansion – even in risky and unstable areas – the country’s economy would neither grow nor be able to meet its responsibility of creating jobs. Our presence in Gaza is not only proof that the Palestinian market is a free market that is safe for investments, it is also a message to the world that we are here to stay, grow, and develop with all the people of this cherished and peaceful land.

Imad Hindi has been the general manager of the National Beverage Company Coca-Cola/Cappy since 2006. He has held various successful management positions during the past nineteen years and is an active member of many Palestinian organisations, including INJAZ Palest ine, the Palestinian American Chamber of Commerce, and Palestine Industrial Investment Company. He is also an effective contributor in the business field and social development.Photo by Omar Al Qeta.

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The Capital MarketThe Gateway to Investment

By Lina Abu-Diab

he global financial crisis of 2008 affected all individuals in one way or another, even the most sophisticated players within the worldwide investment industry. Today we see positive indicators of a recovery from the crisis that somehow restore confidence in capital and financial markets, and highlight the opportunities of the future. Financial markets are back as the spearhead of the economy in many countries.

This differs slightly in our Palestinian reality. Palestine lives a unique situation where the occupation constantly threatens its economic stability and growth. Stability is vital to encourage investment in the Palestinian economy. The excellent performance in the financial sector, however, proves our ability to deal with the tough conditions of our geopolitical reality.

The Palestine Exchange (PEX) was established in 1995, a year after the Palestinian Authority was formed, as a step to creating a promising investment environment in Palestine. Many accomplishments were

achieved during the last two decades, such as providing a set of regulations that govern the work of the securities’ sector. The primary goal was to ensure investor protection and to build an investment environment based on the best international standards. It was also critical to place Palestine on the global investment map.

Companies listed on the exchange can reap many advantages; in particular, the opportunity to raise capital. This is an inexpensive source compared to other available choices such as bank loans. Another advantage is the services offered by the Clearing Depository and Settlement Center in the exchange that manages shareholders’ registr ies for l isted companies. Strategic partnerships with international investors (institutional or retail) will motivate companies to perform better and expand their scope of business, which can be done much more easily when a company is listed. Attracting more investment to the private sector provides suppor t to the Palestinian economy and minimises reliance on donors and other unsustainable sources of income.

Despite the decrease in recent overall trading activity, exchanges are still performing in other areas, such as

managing the disclosure process, which is an important part of the investor protection process since it provides all the information needed to manage any investment, while safeguarding the principle of equal opportunity for all. Advanced systems are also used in the surveillance of trading on exchanges, to fur ther advance the transparency of the investment environment. The performance of capital markets can be an indicator of the future and therefore gives the option for investors to act accordingly.

On-going effor ts continue through exchanges to educate investors about investor rights and what to consider when making investment decisions. Many programmes implemented serve the goal of developing community knowledge about the investment concept, not only to attract new investments but also to provide the basic education needed to protect the individual from lack of experience. Building the financial literacy of youth will produce significant results in the future and ultimately enhance the well-being of Palestinian society.

Lina Abu-Diab is head of the public relations and investor education section in the Palestine Exchange- PEX, where she has been working since 2007. Lina graduated from Bethlehem University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

4746

I Choose You, Palestine

By Reem Masrouji Bseiso

chose you my homeland, lovingly and willingly;

I chose you my homeland, secretly and publicly.”

Excerpt from “I Chose You, My Homeland,” a poem written by Mahmoud Darwish and sung by Marcel Khalife

Our initiative is an integral part of all the boycott initiatives that have begun in Palestine since the first Intifada. The difference this time is that, first, we take a positive approach to reaching consumers. Instead of telling them to boycott, beware, and avoid the occupation’s products, we encourage them to reach for and give priority to Palestinian national products. Secondly, we want consumers to choose national products out of their awareness and knowledge, not as an emotional reaction. And thirdly, we want to encourage voluntary work through motivating people “to give part of themselves” to spread the word and be able to fulfil the goals of raising consciousness and instilling pride in our products.

As a community, we are used to criticising our national products and deem them inferior. We somehow glorify imported and Israeli goods as superior products that are worthy of our trust and selection. The fact is, however, that the great majority of our factories are up to standard and even better in many cases than their Israeli equivalents; that is despite the many challenges that our manufacturers face, including the lack of adequate facilities.

We want consumers to decide at the time of purchase that they want to give priority to the national product; it must be their first choice at all times.

One of the very few choices that the occupation has not taken away from us is the freedom to choose which products and services to buy. Our initiative encourages people to use this freedom correctly and purchase the Palestinian product as a first choice, not only because it is a patriotic act, but also because Palestinian-made products are of high quality and worthy of our trust and selection.

During the first Intifada people tried to do whatever they could to resist the occupation and thus began the first movements of boycotting the occupation’s products. They had a very basic approach at the time; they would punish the grocery stores and food markets that insisted on selling Israeli products. We all remember the acts of dumping Israeli-made milk and juice in the streets. Soon

These words are the inspiration behind the slogan for the initiative to support Palestinian national products: I Choose You, Palestine. We started the initiative with the Palestinian Society for Consumer Protection (PCP); “we” includes mothers, fathers, institutions, students, manufacturers, supermarkets, and people from all walks of life who have gathered to support Palestinian-made products by highlighting Palestine’s little-known quality products and great factories.

Photo by PalTrade.

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after the Intifada ended, people went back to buying Israeli products. The notion of boycott at the time was not an act of knowledge, awareness, and consciousness, it was a reaction to fear. During the brutal war on Gaza this summer, many people also boycotted the occupation products. But as soon as the war ended and pictures of children being killed and homes being destroyed were no longer shown on TV, many of us turned back to buying the products, as if nothing had happened. Once again, boycott was not an act of awareness. This lack of sustainability of the boycott is due in major part to the fragile sense of patriotism. Other boycott movements star ted to realise this and began to focus on awareness raising. Our goal today is that every person reach a level of conviction that necessitates the choosing of Palestinian national products, a complete awareness of the consequences of buying or not buying national products.

Why do we have to buy the national product?

In the words of Gibran Khalil Gibran: “Pity the nation that wears a cloth it does not weave and eats a bread it does not harvest.”

Buying national products does not just fill the patriotic void, it also contributes greatly to the Palestinian economy. Suppor ting national industry, agriculture, tourism, and services results in creating more jobs and reducing unemployment. It contributes directly to the GDP and the state’s treasury, which pays salaries, creates development, reduces dependency on international aid, and consequently helps achieve real independence in the future. Students, in par ticular, need to understand that buying the national product will help them find jobs when they grow up. They need to know that if they suppor t their national product they are actually supporting

themselves. Buying national products is not just a patriotic act or an economic necessity, it is also a personal necessity that is in the interest of each one of us.

We have many products that are a source of pride: paints, plastic, aluminium, shoes, pharmaceuticals, foods and sweets, chocolate, dairy products, farms, agricultural products, stone, steel works, construction material, etc. Even mushrooms were recently produced, in addition to olive oil, pickles, aromatic plants, embroidery, and handicrafts.

There are many consumers who prefer to buy the national product, but when they are at the supermarket, they can become confused because of the wide selection of foreign alternatives that surround the national products. Part of our initiative, then, is to label the national product with the logo to help lead interested consumers to their preferred national items.

Our initiative aims to work with various parts of the consumer circle: the manufacturer, the consumer, the point of sale, and even the media. In this way we will create a wholesome package that takes all aspects into consideration. It is like “connecting the dots.” Creating the connection will help support everybody.

We are calling on interested people to join us and to help in supporting the national product in a spirit of pride and conviction. Let us hold hands and shout out loud: “I Choose You, Palestine.”

R e e m M a s r o u j i B s e i s o i s a board member of the Palestine Businesswomen’s Forum. Since 1993, she has been the business development director at the Masrouji Group, which is one of the largest diversified business groups in Palestine and includes ventures in distribution, medical equipment, logistics, finance, communications, and IT.

5352

Business Etiquette: Why Is It Important?

By Haifa Shawwa

t has been quite some time since I first started promoting “business etiquette,” both as a concept and as a learnable skill in Palestine and other Arab countries. I typically had to meet human resources managers in an attempt to sound out and identify their expected “EQ” – employability quotient –for potential employees. After interviewing fresh graduates, I was not very surprised by the results, and I could easily understand the employers’ concerns. It was all about attitude and behaviour. They needed employees who would present a marketable image and display the ability to retain long-term customers and attract new ones. “A successful candidate should be able to market himself to me,” one CEO commented. “Then he would definitely succeed in marketing my company to more and more customers.”

Business etiquette is the connecting link between academia and technical skills. It encompasses not only a refined professional attitude but also appearance, the ability to impress and stand out, and ultimately the establishment of a “brand” presence. First impressions are made even before we say something to prove our knowledge or expertise, so it’s so critical to win this battle. People unfairly judge us through how we carry ourselves, how we react, and what we communicate through our silent messages. Thus, mastering our business-etiquette skills allows us to have almost full control over how others perceive us, and ultimately how they judge us. In sales and service, customers are instinctively attracted to a salesperson/service provider with a smile, a neat, fresh appearance, and the right welcoming body language. Better/higher sales are typically achieved in a friendly, respectful, caring

environment. Customers nowadays are more demanding; they expect a more sophisticated service. It’s not only the quality of the merchandise that they seek, it’s the attention, care, and respect that really attract them and keep them happy and faithful.

Logically speaking, customers are more likely to be attracted to well-behaved, neat, well-groomed service providers or salespeople. They automatically choose to communicate with, ask for information, and buy from them. At a later stage, when customers visit again, they often ask for the specific salesperson who had helped them previously. More impor tantly, customers will perceive the “brand attitude” of the company through their experience with that par ticular employee. In other words, customers will normally judge the company’s marketing attitude through the salesperson’s attitude. For this reason employers should be diligent about considering applicants and integrating this kind of learning in their training plans. A work environment that is characterised by positive and pleasant behaviour (business-etiquette skills) has the potential to bring about a significant increase in sales. On the other hand, bad customer service behaviour may not only decrease sales but also repel potential customers. Angry

customers normally feel the need to share their bad experiences with double the number of people that happy customers usually discuss their satisfaction with. Articles published in such reputable magazines as Forbes stress the impor tance of diverse etiquette skills in the workplace as indispensible practices in achieving excellence in any work sector, or all sectors to be more precise. In a Forbes article titled “Business Protocol and Etiquette to Increase Sales and Help Develop Better Business Relations,” Jan Yager– sociologist/speaker/consultant with more than 35 books on communication and marketing – describes business protocol/etiquette as a strategy for success for every business sector, including tourism, medicine, banking, and telecommunications.

I remember reading a statement that captures the core of why managers should promote etiquette skills throughout all work environments of all work sectors: “The quality of the

Perceiving business etiquette as an essential tool for all levels of professionals is the star ting point toward personal and corporate development and excellence. From top management to janitors and bus boys, such skills help organisations/companies become more productive and establish a behaviour brand that is part of the professional reputation that all businesses wish for. Promoting a customer-friendly environment has the potential to lead to a dramatic increase in sales.

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contact with the client has a direct impact on the result.” “Quality of the contact” could be interpreted as having a positive and pleasant demeanour or, better, as an attraction rather than a repulsion between customer and salespeople. Attraction also implies retaining long-term customers who would logically promote you to new customers. The sought-after “result” is the “deal”; a positive, satisfactory, unforgettable shopping experience for the customer, and a clearly profitable endeavour for the business owner.

No business sector could expect to really flourish without the aid of professional etiquette. It is the lubricant that keeps heavy machines working smoothly and quietly, preventing breakage and encouraging

production. It is about creating a fluid work environment that respects group rights and individual rights, and that is oriented towards success and profit. It is the real master behind easy teamwork, customer satisfaction, and an exceptional business reputation. All are components of the attitude branding for which every business owner yearns.

In Arab countries, business etiquette is slowly but surely crawling towards its golden era. What at first seemed like a luxury is now in great demand. It is in its powerful launch phase. People in the corporate world knew that something was missing, but the term and concept of business etiquette were not well known. Now almost every aspiring business owner realises and, better still, knows

that it is a crucial component of a successful, impressive business. Interested business owners are currently seeking the services of etiquette exper ts in such diverse sectors as aviation, entrepreneurship, hospitals, parliaments, and even education.

In Palestine the situation is also encourag ing . Emp loyers a re obviously becoming more serious about choosing the employee who would best represent them, one who is able to impress and to win new customers without the risk of losing old ones. Fresh graduates who have gone through some kind of business-etiquette training tend to have better chances of overcoming “interview phobia,” and winning the job. Banks, organisations, and

prominent corporate institutions obviously perceive the impact of attitude change on customer retention and loyalty. They know that positive and friendly employee behaviour is par t of the image branding of the place and definitely part of the profit formula.

The same, however, cannot be said about the public sector in Palestine. Rarely does this body express interest in a collective upgrading of staff, although complaints regarding e m p l o y e e c u s t o m e r- s e r v i c e behaviour are higher compared to those within the private sector. It maybe for funding reasons, or a lack of strategy, or even because the public typically “needs” such services and is unable to find them somewhere else. So they have no other choice but to accept problematic attitudes, whether they like it or not.

But there are some interesting observations that should be noted regarding the motives behind interested organisations/individuals who seek the services of business-etiquette experts in their efforts to either fine-tune their staff’s skills or opt to ignore totally the need to integrate it in their yearly training agenda. Some see it as a trend, an atypical training topic that they would love to be pioneers in. These people are never really serious about a needs assessment plan or about achieving an impactful outcome. It’s more about ticking that “job done” block in their training-plans agenda. But others are more serious about the aftermath of the training, and they even inquire about the expected ROI (return on investment) straight from the beginning. An attitude-based ROI of course. At this point I talk to them about a more serious long-term return on investment, a money-based return. In other cases, it’s about an ambitious open-minded manager’s personal perspective on development. And this is the case where one can

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sense the highest level of follow up with the expert. This is also where the organisation/company seeks and pursues indicators of attitude change. This is the real road to success.

After many years in this energetic, humane, and ever-changing field of knowledge, I feel that things are finally on the right track, both in the Arab world and in Palestine in

par ticular. People no longer raise an eyebrow when I tell them that etiquette is a crucial subject and that it may make or break established corporations. Everyone is now ready to listen, to know more, and, of course, to consider whether or not this is really what they want to invest in, for themselves and for their businesses. After all, etiquette – social or corporate – will always be a matter of personal choice, a matter of perspective – but a very dangerous one. Opting for it makes one stand out. Ignoring it, well, it’s quite an easy choice to make.

Haifa Shawwa is a consultant/trainer in business etiquette and protocol. She is a Palestinian published writer who has experience in culture, tradition, education, politics, and curriculum design. She has her own etiquette-training business that offers the community the means towards more productive and conflict-free communication.

5958

For Economic Development, We Need Freedom

By Xavier Abu Eid

hen Senator Mitt Romney, in a cheap attempt to gather Zionist support for his presidential bid,

stated that the economic differences between Israel and Palestine have nothing to do with politics

but arise from “culture,” he was met with a harsh response, including by Israelis. Former US president

Bill Clinton responded by saying that he never saw a “poor Palestinian in the United States.” The message

was clear: Wherever Palestinians were given the freedom to be, to create, and to grow, you would find countless success stories. Sadly enough, this has happened almost everywhere in the world except in our own country.

It is impor tant to note that before 1948, Palestinians had developed a significant economic capacity. The services sector was a pillar of Palestinian development, and while Palestinian Jaffa oranges were being exported all over the world, and the Haifa por t was used as the main exporting place for Iraqi oil, the tourism sector grew at a rate of 25 percent before the par tition of Palestine in 1947. As the Palestine Encyclopaedia states, only between 1944 and 1945 did the Arab Bank pay a dividend of 24 percent on its shares, something that very few other banks in the region could have done. Most of this capacity could be seen in various enterprises started by Palestinians in Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and Arab Gulf countries, and later on expanded to the United States, Canada, Australia, and even Greece, among others.

More than 66 years after the 1948 Nakba (catastrophe) that forced our people into exile, we are familiar with and proud of what thousands of Palestinians have been able to build in various par ts of the world. The

question is how the same success can be brought to the homeland. This requires a political solution that would end the Israeli occupation and allow the Palestinian people to exercise their full rights over their land.

I was raised in Chile, the largest Palestinian community outside the Arab world, where it is possible for Palestinians to attain their full potential: From businesspeople to professionals, and bank owners to ministers, Palestinians are all over the spectrum. The most well-known malls, textile factories, sausage factories, and even Coca Cola plants have been in Palestinian hands for decades. The PLO has attempted to attract sources of income from Chile since the seventies, and many provided financial support to the PLO during one of its most difficult economic periods (1982–1993). However, the lack of a long-term policy and

From businesspeople to professionals, and bank o w n e r s t o m i n i s t e r s , Palestinians who live in Chile are all over the spectrum. The most well-known malls, textile factories, sausage factories, and even Coca Cola plants have been in Pa l es t i n i an hands f o r decades.

Pro-Palestinian demonstration outside La Moneda presidential palace in Santiago, Chile

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disrupted channels of communication made the efforts fail. This is one of the main issues that the government of Palestine needs to solve in order to attract diaspora investments, and it is part of an overall policy towards our communities abroad.

The lack of such policies ended up by disrupting the strong relations between the Palestinian communities in Chile and in the homeland. The Chilean community went from being an important source of support for the PLO during the eighties to its role today of providing suppor t to charitable organisations in Palestine. The few exceptions to the rule – meaning real investments – are being channelled mainly through the private sector, and particularly through the efforts made by the Bank of Palestine.

Since 2005 international players have proposed several plans to develop the Palestinian economy, but many of them leave out the biggest obstacle: the Israeli occupation. Recently, the Office of the Quartet Representative released a study on how to lower the price of housing in Palestine. While reading it, I could see many different

Club Deportivo Palestino’s new jerseys. Palestino is an esteemed first-division club that has been around for almost a century.

formulas and analyses, including condit ions given by banks and individual income, but the main point was missing: As much as 61 percent of the West Bank remains off limits for most Palestinians. The price of the land will continue to increase, making it more difficult for Palestinians abroad to invest and for those in the homeland to stay. Nothing was mentioned about occupied East Jerusalem and the barriers imposed by the occupation on Palestinian construction there. As long as the paradigms for Palestinian economic development are led by this type of analysis, the enablers of real Palestinian economic development will continue to be blocked, thus creating more obstacles for diaspora par ticipation in the building of a prosperous and free State of Palestine.

In addition, we need to do away with some mental obstacles: Palestine is for all Palestinians. The mentality that distinguishes “those abroad” from “those inside” is not going to help build our country. Overall the question of whether there is a potential for Palestinian diaspora economic involvement in Palestine must be linked with elections for the Palestine National

The first Palestinian film festival in Chile.

Council and opening a real political horizon for a free Palestine. I’m not trying to discourage investment in Palest ine, which is indeed needed. Rather, I’m providing a realistic perspective on how no economic development is possible within the current situation.

There are legal issues that have to be solved and polit ical decisions that have to be made in order to allow real Palestinian economic development, including some very simple enablers such as freedom for Palestinians to be in Palestine; in other words, the end of the Israeli occupation. The mere fact that Israel controls all border crossings discourages many diaspora members from returning to Palestine, not to mention the fact that the majority of them would simply not be allowed to enter.

A few weeks ago I went into my municipality, Beit Jala, to ask who is responsible for the diaspora file. Given that the city of Beit Jala has approximately 10,000 residents and that more than 100,000 people from Beit Jala live abroad, I thought it was a natural question to ask. The answer? Nobody. Municipalities with large diaspora communit ies, such as those of Beit Jala, Be th lehem, Ramal lah , Nablus, or Gaza, should have someone in charge of the diaspora, which would include providing suppor t and encouragement for business oppor tunities in Palestine.

Other initiatives should be taken into consideration in order to continue building capacity for Palestine, including relying on technical capacity coming from the diaspora, which has been largely dismissed over the past 20 years. It is important to remember that Palestinians in general are willing to make sacrifices to invest in their own country rather than invest somewhere else. As one of the wealthiest diaspora Palestinians I know once told an envoy from an Arab country who asked him for investments, “I’m a businessman. I invest where I know that I can make money. The only exception I make is Palestine because it’s my country.” People like him are willing to invest, but in order to reach their full potential they need clear guidelines, policies, and most importantly, freedom.

Xavier Abu Eid is a political scientist who was born in Santiago de Chile to a family from Beit Jala, Bethlehem District. Currently he serves as a communications adviser to the PLO – Negotiations Affairs Department in Ramallah, Palestine.

PERSONALITYOF THE MONTH

BOOK OF THE MONTH

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The Mosaics of Khirbet el-Mafjar, Hisham’s Palace

Talal Nasereddin, CEO

By Hamdan Taha and Donald WhitcombDepartment of Antiquities, Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, 2010128 pages, 150 photosAvailable at the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities offices in Bethlehem and Ramallah

The Mosaics of Khirbet el-Mafjar, Hisham’s Palace contains a presentation of beautiful coloured mosaics that originate from Hisham’s Palace in Jericho. The mosaics can be found in various palace rooms, the audience hall, the sirdab, and the diwan. The palace dates from the first half of the eighth century, during the time of the Umayyad Caliphate of the early Islamic period.

Hisham’s Palace is regarded as one of the best examples of early Islamic architecture in Palestine. The site consists of a palace, a thermal complex, and a perimeter wall. The palace was subject to a series of restorations throughout its history, and following the transfer of authority to the Palestinian side in 1994, the Palestinian Depar tment of Antiquities began to attend to the task of preserving the site. A project to restore and rehabilitate the site was launched in 1996, in cooperation with the Department of Antiquities and UNESCO. An updated topographic map and a preliminary master plan were produced. In the first phase, work focused on the restoration of the mosaic in the small bath (sirdab). It was followed by restoration of the mosaic in the main bath hall and reorganisation of the site museum. A mosaic laboratory was established with the help of the Italian government. In 2008, a rehabilitation

project, funded by USAID through ANERA, was carried out on the site, focusing on site management and access roads.

In 2010, the Palestinian Depar tment of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage uncovered, cleaned, and assessed the state of conservation of the palace mosaics. A series of high quality digital photographs, from which the images in this volume were taken, was prepared by a team from the department that included M. Diab, I. Hamdan, N. Khatib, S. Ghazal, and R. Sharaia, under the direction of H. Taha. The Mosaics of Khirbet el-Mafjar, Hisham’s Palace is offered for study and appreciation of this triumph in early Islamic art. The authors allow the images to speak for themselves and provide only brief explanatory comments.

Since 2010, joint excavations undertaken by the Depar tment of Antiquities and the University of Chicago have renewed interest in the presentation of this unique monument. A new museum and visitor’s guide have enhanced the understanding of the context of these mosaics. Unfor tunately, the mosaics themselves cannot be experienced since they lie under a protective coating and sand until an appropriate protective shelter may be constructed over them. The Japanese government, through JICA, has recently shown interest in assisting in the protection of this spectacular mosaic heritage. With the sheltering and presentation of the mosaics, the site of Khirbet el-Mafjar (Hisham’s Palace) will become a prime destination for local and international tourists and a source of pride in Palestinian culture.

Life was miserable in the early 1940s.

Like many Hebronites, Abdullah, the grandfather of Talal Nasereddin, thought that Jerusalem had better business oppor tunities than Hebron. With the aid of his two older sons, Kheiry and Kathem, Talal’s grandfather succeeded in finding his way into a small shop of six square metres in Souk Khan Al-Zeit. Unfortunately, the 1948 war had a drastic economic and social impact on the Palestinians. Despite the circumstances, Talal, the oldest son, had the opportunity to attend the College des Frères in Jerusalem for his high school education. After finishing school, Talal went against his parents’ wishes and studied industrial chemistry rather than medicine. In August 1974, Talal obtained a master’s degree in chemistry from the American University of Beirut (AUB). His choice was the beginning of his success.

While he was still a student at AUB, Talal was introduced to Mr. Subhi Khoury – the pharmacist who founded Birzeit Pharmaceutical Co. – who offered Talal par tnership in this enterprise. This partnership laid the foundation for Talal’s career as a quality control manager. At the same time, he lectured at Birzeit University where he helped transform the chemistry department curriculum from an associate’s degree programme into that of a bachelor’s degree, thus upgrading the quality of education in the sciences at the university. Ten years later, in March 1984, Talal was appointed chairman of the board and CEO of Birzeit Pharmaceutical Company (BPC).

In 1992 Talal played a major role in expanding Bir zeit Pharmaceutical Company by merging with Palestine Medical Company, followed by another merger with Eastern Chemicals Company. In 2003, Talal’s professional career grew

beyond Birzeit Pharmaceutical Company when he founded and chaired the Petropal Mineral Oil Company. In 2005, Talal established Lotus Financial Investment Company and partnered in establishing The National Bank (TNB), which he also chairs. Later in 2007, Talal invested in establishing Al-Takaful Insurance Company and was appointed chairman of the board. He is also a board member of the Palestine Telecommunications Co. (Paltel). Talal invested in establishing ABRAJ Investment and Development Co., and became chairman of the board.

As part of his active participation in the development of the Palestinian private-sector community, Talal par ticipated in founding the Palestine Trade Center (PalTrade). He also founded the Palestinian Federation of Industries (PFI), which he chaired until 2003. Talal was a board member at the Palestine Investment Fund (PIF) until 2006, and a board member of the Palestine Monetary Authority. He also helped in the foundation of the Union of Palestinian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (UPPM), which he chaired until 2008, and in the establishment of the Businessmen’s Association in 1998. Talal is currently a board member in both the Palestinian American Chamber of Commerce – PACC, Palestine and The International Chamber of Commerce-ICC, Palestine.

Whenever you encounter Talal Nasereddin you will find him gardening; he will be gardening his family, his garden, or his business. His vision for Palestine is that you have to work hard to be independent in all sectors of life. “All my investments are in Palestine,” Talal proudly states. “I believe in that.” Everyone who knows Mr. Talal Nasereddin can be sure that he will continue to garden to see Palestine free.

ARTIST OF THE MONTH

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Introspection for an “Outsider”

By Marion Slitine

The Outsider by British novelist Colin Wilson, who popularised the notion of a new existentialism, told the story of a man who found solace in a strict self-imposed discipline and a deep level of inwardness. A man who learned to control his life and search for his own way outside of society, in a form of meditation and inner freedom. Within her bedroom, Nidaa Badwan revisits The Outsider and the work of her favourite author.

This is the story of an “outsider girl”: outside of the world, outside of social norms, cloistered in her bedroom. The visual narration of a Gazan artist who, in her own words, defines herself as “different” and who “does not belong to anything or anywhere.” This woman is a thousand faces of the same girl, as well as a thousand women of her own society. After a closer look, we see that her pictures paint the intimate portrait of a multifarious society, together wounded and joyful, nostalgic and playful.

Throughout her series of colourful photographs, Nidaa Badwan projects the viewer into her intimate universe, the daily reality of a faceless woman – her face is only clearly seen once – which gives her work a universal scope. The young creator directs herself as in a play: she cries, sews, puts on makeup, meditates, dozes off... As the protagonist of her own work, she follows as much as renews a tradition dear to the female pioneers of contemporary Palestinian photography,

who have turned this sor t of self-staging into an artistic leitmotiv.

Armed with a simple but “vital” camera, inside her bedroom, the graduate of Gaza’s Al-Aqsa University Department of Fine Arts captures her universe as would a painter: controlled pictorial compositions, delicate chiaroscuros, and well developed warm colours. While fascinated by nanotechnologies and quantum physics, she revisits classic still-life paintings: the bright colours remind the viewer of Van Gogh, who Badwan describes as “a master”; Caravaggio’s chiaroscuros also come to mind, as well as Chardin’s still-life and genre paintings (Le Château de cartes, 1737) or David’s highly dramatised neoclassical works (The Death of Marat, 1793).

This contrast can also be found in the inside/outside dialectic. Outside, a conservative Gaza Strip ruined by repeated assaults and an enduring blockade – outside: death. Inside, a flurry of life and endless creativity – inside: life. The power of Nidaa Badwan’s work is precisely this ability to distance itself from the local representation of violence, a major influence on ar t in Gaza, to offer, poetically and humorously, a new way of perceiving existence. With her photographs, she breathes actual life into still-life works. “I want to return its colours to Gaza, which knows neither colours nor peace,” she confided a month after the war in the summer of 2014. Badwan, like many ar tists of

the new generation, turns away from the narrative of collective victimhood, finding her own rhetoric that is both more personal and more critical, and questioning, or even putting aside the collective or national notions. At a time when the peace process has failed, the national ideal is null and void, and leaders have lost all credit, the artist turns inward to her own private and ar tistic sphere, where she can find more hope than in most political speeches. This withdrawal and this staging of the self are not meant to serve a self-centred narrative, but on the contrary to shift this narrative and bestow upon it a dimension as original as it is universal.

Nidaa Badwan’s first photographic exhibition is not a mere nod at Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s famous novel. It is the result of an actual, self-imposed retreat by the artist who has not left her room for over a year. Since December 19, 2013, Nidaa Badwan adheres to a strict ascetic way of life in which she refuses to leave her isolation, even during the war, a time during which she stayed alone to create, while bombs were raining down on her neighbourhood of Deir Al-Balah, south of Gaza City.

Nidaa Badwan composes with makeshift materials and items scavenged in her home: the vegetables her mother brought back from the market, a stool that turns now into shelves, now into a swing, or the barbed wire rolls that she uses as interior decoration... All the pretexts are good enough to draw beauty from nothing and breathe

humanity into things. This economy of means is the mark of “emergency art,” attesting to an actual existentialist project. As a humanist, the creator demonstrates, in line with Sar tre’s words, that “each individual is a unique being who is the master not only of her actions but also of her fate.”

In the middle of a 360-square-kilometre open-air prison, the ar tist decides to remain confined in a fistful of square metres and “find its beauty” there. By recreating a form of chosen impr isonment, the ar t is t ic and existential performance can be seen as a catharsis experience for the young artist who only dreams of “creating a new world.” “I want to turn Gaza into something beautiful, to change things.” A year of solitude for Nidaa Badwan, who explores her deepest innards to extract from them life, creativity, and freedom. In her creative retreat, this “outsider girl” tells the story of a Gaza that is rebelliously beautiful.

Marion Slitine is a PhD candidate in Palestinian contemporary art (Musée du Quai Branly/EHESS – School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences – Paris).

Nidaa Badwan’s exhibition will open on January 22 at the Palestinian Art Court – Al Hoash, Al-Zahra Street, Jerusalem. Opening hours: Thursday, and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Al Hoash will host an Artist Talk with the artist on January 24, as part of the new series of Art Talks.

MUSEUM REVIEW

66

Samaritans Museum

Located on top of Mt. Gerizim in Nablus City, the Samaritans Museum was established in 1997 by Priest Husni Al-Samiri. The museum tells of the strife and hardships of the Samaritans throughout the ages. The Samaritans arrived in the land of Palestine 3,652 years ago, and they are the smallest religious sect in the world.

The Samaritans Museum houses precious collectibles, including religious scripts, antiques, artefacts, Hebrew books, Samaritan hymns, and expressive photos. In spite of its small but rare collections, the museum was met with widespread attention and was renovated in 2010 by the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities with financial support from UNESCO as well as donations from members of the Samaritan sect. Some of the renovation works were also funded by the family of Priest Al-Samiri.

The museum contains what is considered the most important item for the Samaritans, namely, the oldest written copy of the Torah in the world that dates back more than 3,652 years. The Samaritan community has received generous offers to sell the Torah or keep it in other world museums, but all the offers have been rejected. Believing that the value of each and every Samaritan derives from the ancient Torah, Priest Al-Samiri insists that the copy of the Torah must remain in the possession of the sect and transmitted to successive Samaritan generations. Earlier, two copies of the Torah (one 600 years old and the other 700 years old) were stolen from the Samaritans, and despite the efforts made to identify who was behind the theft and retrieve the copies, the perpetrators remain anonymous to date.

The oldest Torah in the world is kept in a metal cabinet. The Samaritans regard the Torah as the most important pillar for their existence and an essential component of their identity. The Torah is read on special religious occasions only.

The Samaritans Museum on top of Mt. Gerizim is a rich source of knowledge about the history and culture of the Samaritan sect. But the Samaritans are also an integral part of the Palestinian people and the Palestinian social fabric.

A copy of the Samaritan Torah handwritten by Priest Wassef Khader Al-Samiri in 1944. Photo courtesy of Ahed Izhiman.

A painting showing the arrival of the people of Israel to Mt. Gerizim 3,000 years ago. Photo courtesy of Ahed Izhiman.

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Al-Ma’mal: 02-628 3457; Centre for Jerusalem Studies (CJS): 02-628 7517; Grassroots 02-966 5655/6; Yabous Cultural

Centre: 02-626 1045; Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center: 02-298 7374; Palestinian Museum: 02-297 4797; FGCC (French-German

Cultural Center): 02-298 1922; The Danish House in Palestine (DHIP): 02-298 8457.

JERUSALEM CONCERTSFriday 9

18:00 Salvador Arnita’s Centennial Celebration organised by Yabous and the National Conservatory of Music. Piano: Dina Shilleh, Jiries Boullata, Hannah Gallagher; Clarinet: Katie Rowald and Melissa von Itter; Cello: Rand Khoury, Yabous Cultural Centre

Tuesday 1318:30 Jerusalem Knights Choir, Al-Ma’mal Foundation for Contemporary Art, New Gate

EXHIBITIONSTuesday 6

18:00 Cinema Filistin, a photography exhibition documenting cinemas in Palestine, by Julius Matuschik (Germany), organised by the French-German Cultural Center, venue: Will Brant Center, Jerusalem

Thursday 2218:00 Opening of Introspection for an “Outsider,” by Nidaa Badwan. Throughout the week, opening hours: Monday to Thursday and Saturday: 9:00 till 16:00, in cooperation with the French Institute, Jerusalem. Venue: Palestinian Art Court – Al Hoash.

FILMSThursday 15

18:00 My Love Awaits Me by the Sea, directed by Mais Darwazah. When director Mais Darwazah discovered for the first time the drawings and poems of Hasan Hourani, she felt the rapture of having found a kindred soul. Hourani had drowned a couple of years earlier while trying to save his nephew from drowning. A singular painter and poet, in his work he created a fantastical world where he was a character stuck in boyhood, unaffected by the prohibitions of the occupation of the West Bank in which he grew up. In Hasan Is Everywhere, a book he published shortly before his death, he lives underwater and sleeps in the clouds, consoles a lonely dinosaur, and falls in love with a fish. Yabous Cultural Centre

Friday 1618:00 My Love Awaits Me by the Sea, directed by Mais Darwazah. See description of the documentary above, Yabous Cultural Centre

Thursday 2217:00-19:00 A World not Ours. Feature documentary telling the story of multiple generations of exile in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ein El-Hilweh in Lebanon, Grassroots Jerusalem.

SPECIAL EVENTSSaturday 24

16:00 Palestinian Art Court – Al Hoash will host artist Nidaa Badwan as part of the new series of Art Talks.

TOURSSaturday 17

10:00 Mamluk Jerusalem (The Old City),

meeting point: CJS, The Old City, tour guided by Mahmoud Abu Eid, Centre for Jerusalem Studies (Al Quds University)

Wednesday 2117:00 Western Wall Tunnels, meeting point: CJS, the Old City, tour guided by Robin Abu Shamseyeh, Centre for Jerusalem Studies (Al Quds University)

Saturday 2410:00 Unknown Jerusalem (The Old City), meeting point: CJS, the Old City, tour guided by George Hintlian, Centre for Jerusalem Studies (Al Quds University)

Saturday 3109:30 Jericho – City of the Moon, meeting point: Turkish Consulate - Sheikh Jarrah, tour guided by Hisham Khatib, Centre for Jerusalem Studies (Al Quds University)

RAMALLAH/AL-BIREH EXHIBITIONS

Sunday 11 to Thursday 29 Poster exhibition of different German cities and landscapes, French-German Cultural Center

FILMSThursday 15

17:30 Hands off Mississippi, Boyhood, Children’s films (DE 2007, 98 min., German with English subtitles), French-German Cultural Center

Saturday 1718:00 The Tin Drum, Literary Cinema (DE & PL 1979, 142 min., German with English subtitles), organised by the French-German Cultural Center, venue: Mahmoud Darwish Museum

THEATRESaturday 10

10:00 Mish Zabta, the latest production of the Palestinian Circus School. The show brings us a lot of laughter and joy. It tells the story of four young men filled with hope and ambitions to realise their dreams as they return from abroad carrying their university degrees. But while they are looking for a job and trying to enjoy their time, they face many challenges that turn their images and expectations upside down. Venue: under the circus tent for children from Al Jalazone Refugee Camp

JENIN THEATREThursday 8

18:00 Mish Zabta, the latest production of the Palestinian Circus School. The show brings us a lot of laughter and joy. It tells the story of four young men filled with hope and ambitions to realise their dreams as they return from abroad carrying their university degrees. But while they are looking for a job and trying to enjoy their time, they face many challenges that turn their images and expectations upside down, Cinema Jenin

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EAST JERUSALEM (02)

ARTLABMob. 0544 343 798, artlabjerusalem@gmail.com

Al-Jawal Theatre GroupTelefax: 628 0655

Al-Ma’mal Foundation for Contemporary ArtTel: 628 3457, Fax: 627 2312info@almamalfoundation.orgwww.almamalfoundation.org

Alruwah TheatreTel: 626 2626, alruwahtheatre2000@yahoo.com

Al-Urmawi Centre for Mashreq MusicTel: 234 2005, Fax: 234 2004 info@urmawi.org, www.urmawi.org

America Househttp://jerusalem.usconsulate.gov/americahouse2.html

Ashtar for Theatre Productions & TrainingTelefax: 582 7218info@ashtar-theatre.org, www.ashtar-theatre.org

British CouncilTel: 626 7111, Fax: 628 3021information@ps.britishcouncil.orgwww.britishcouncil.org/ps

Centre for Jerusalem Studies/Al-Quds UniversityTel: 628 7517, cjs@planet.edu www.jerusalem-studies.alquds.edu

Community Action Centre (CAC)Tel: 627 3352, Fax: 627 4547, www.cac.alquds.edu

Educational BookshopTel: 627 5858, Fax: 628 0814info@educationalbookshop.com www.educationalbookshop.com

El-Hakawati Theatre CompanyTel: 583 8836, Mobile: 0545 835 268f.abousalem@gmail.com, www.el-hakawati.org

French Cultural CentreTel: 628 2451 / 626 2236, Fax: 628 4324 ccfjeru@consulfrance-jerusalem.org

Issaf Nashashibi Center for Culture & LiteratureTelefax: 581 8232, isaaf@alqudsnet.com

Jerusalem Centre for Arabic MusicTel: 627 4774, Fax: 656 2469, mkurd@yahoo.com

Melia Art CenterTeleFax: 628 1377, Melia@bezeqint.netwww.meliaartandtrainingcenter.com

Palestinian Art Court - Al HoashTelefax: 627 3501info@alhoashgallery.org, www.alhoashgallary.org

Palestinian National TheatreTel: 628 0957, Fax: 627 6293, info@pnt-pal.org

Sabreen Association for Artistic DevelopmentTel: 532 1393, sabreen@sabreen.org www.jerusalem.usconsulate.govwww.facebook.com/USConGenJerusalem

Sanabel Culture & Arts TheatreTel: 671 4338, Fax: 673 0993sanabeltheatre@yahoo.com

The Bookshop at the American Colony HotelTel: 627 9731, Fax: 627 9779 bookshop.americancolony@gmail.com www. americancolony.com

The Edward Said National Conservatory of MusicTel: 627 1711, Fax: 627 1710 info@ncm.birzeit.edu, ncm.birzeit.edu

The Magnificat IntstituteTel: 626 6609, Fax: 626 6701magnificat@custodia.org www.magnificatinstitute.org

Theatre Day ProductionsTel: 585 4513, Fax: 583 4233tdp@theatreday.org, www.theatreday.org

Turkish Cultural CentreTel: 591 0530/1, Fax: 532 3310kudustur@netvision.net.il, www.kudusbk.com

Wujoud MuseumTel: 626 0916, www.wujoud.org, info@wujoud.org

Yabous Cultural CenterTel: 626 1045; Fax: 626 1372yabous@yabous.org, www.yabous.org

BETHLEHEM (02)

Al-Harah TheatreTelefax: 276 7758, alharahtheater@yahoo.cominfo@alharah.org, www.alharah.org

Alliance Française de BethléemTelefax: 275 0777, afbeth@p-ol.com

Anat Palestinian Folk & Craft CenterTelefax: 277 2024, marie_musslam@yahoo.com

Arab Educational Institute (AEI)-Open WindowsTel: 274 4030, www.aeicenter.org

Artas Folklore CenterMob: 0597 524 524, 0599 679 492, 0503 313 136artasfc@hotmail.com

Badil CentreTel: 277 7086

Beit Jala Community-Based Learning and Action CenterTel: 277 7863

Bethlehem Academy of Music/ Bethlehem Music SocietyTel: 277 7141, Fax: 277 7142

Bethlehem Peace CenterTel: 276 6677, Fax: 276 4670 info@peacenter.org, www.peacenter.org

Catholic Action Cultural CenterTel: 274 3277, Fax 274 2939info@ca-b.org, www.ca-b.org

Centre for Cultural Heritage PreservationTel: 276 6244, Fax: 276 6241info@cchp.ps, www.cchp.ps

Environmental Education CenterTel: 276 5574, eec@p-ol.com, www.eecp.org

Inad Centre for Theatre and ArtsTelefax: 276 6263, www.inadtheater.com

International Centre of Bethlehem-Dar AnnadwaTel: 277 0047, Fax: 277 0048 info@diyar.ps, www.diyar.ps

ITIP Center “Italian Tourist Information Point”Telefax: 276 0411, itipcenter@yahoo.com

Nativity Stationery LibraryMob: 0598 950 447

7372

El-Funoun Dance TroupeTel: 240 2853, Fax: 240 2851info@el-funoun.org, www.el-funoun.org

Franco-German Cultural Centre RamallahTel: 298 1922 / 7727, Fax: 298 1923info@ccf-goethe.org, www.ccf-goethe-ramallah.org

Gallery OneTel: 298 9181, info@galleryone.ps

Greek Cultural Centre - “Macedonia”Telefax: 298 1736/ 298 0546 makdonia@palnet.com

In’ash Al-Usra Society- Center for Heritage & Folklore StudiesTel: 240 1123 / 240 2876, Telefax: 240 1544usra@palnet.com, www.inash.org

International Academy of ArtsTel: 296 7601, info@artacademy.ps

Khalil Sakakini Cultural CenterTel: 298 7374, Fax: 296 6820 sakakini@sakakini.org, www.sakakini.org

Mahmoud Darwish Foundation and MuseumTel: 295 2808, Fax: 295 2809Info@darwishfoundation.org www.darwishfoundation.org

Manar Cultural CenterTel: 295 7937, Fax: 298 7598

Mazra’a Qibliyeh Heritage and Tourism CentreTelefax: 281 5825, mazraaheritage@yahoo.comwww.geocities.com/mazraaheritage/

Nawa InstituteTel: 297 0190, info@nawainstitute.org

Palestine Writing WorkshopMob: 0597 651 408, www.palestineworkshop.com

Palestinian Association for Contemporary Art PACATel: 296 7601, fax: 295 1849paca@pal-paca.org, www.pal-paca.org

Palestinian Association for Cultural Exchange (PACE)Tel: 240 7611, Telfax: 240 7610pace@p-ol.com, www.pace.ps

Popular Art Center Tel: 240 3891, Fax: 240 2851info@popularartcentre.org www.popularartcentre.org

Ramallah Center for Human Rights Studies (RCHRS)Tel: 241 3002Ramallah Cultural PalaceTel: 294 5555, Fax: 295 2107rcpevents@ramallah-city.ps

RIWAQ: Centre for Architectural ConservationTel: 240 6887, Fax: 240 6986 riwaq@palnet.com, www.riwaq.org

Sandouq Elajab TheatreTel: 296 5638, 295 3206 sandouqelajab@yahoo.com

Sareyyet Ramallah - First Ramallah Group (FRG) Tel: 295 2690 - 295 2706, Fax: 298 0583sareyyet@sareyyet.ps, www.sareyyet.ps

Sharek Youth ForumTel: 296 7741, Fax: 296 7742 info@sharek.ps, www.sharek.ps

ShashatTel: 297 3336, Fax: 297 3338info@shashat.org, www.shashat.org

Tamer Institute for Community EducationTel: 298 6121/ 2, Fax: 298 8160tamer@palnet.com, www.tamerinst.org

The Danish House in Palestine (DHIP)TeleFax: 298 8457, info@dhip.ps, www.dhip.ps

The Edward Said National Conservatory of MusicTel: 295 9070, Fax: 295 9071info@ncm.birzeit.edu, www.birzeit.edu/music

The Palestinian Circus SchoolTel: 281 2000, 0568 880 024www.palcircus.ps, info@ palcircus.ps

The Palestinian Network of Art CentresTel: 298 0036, 296 4348/9, Fax: 296 0326iman_aoun@yahoo.com

The Spanish Cultural CenterTel. 295 0893, chp@panoramacenter.org

Young Artist ForumTelefax: 296 7654, yaf@palnet.com

Zawyeh Art GalleryMob. 0597 994 997anani.ziad@gmail.com, www.zawyeh.net

GAZA STRIP (08)

Al-Qattan Centre for the ChildTel: 283 9929, Fax: 283 9949 reem@qcc.qattanfoundation.org www.qattanfoundation.org/qcc

Arts & Crafts VillageTelefax: 284 6405 artvlg@palnet.com, www.gazavillage.org

Ashtar for Culture & ArtsTelefax: 283 3565, atlas9@palnet.com

Culture & Light CentreTelefax: 286 5896, ifarah@palnet.com

Dialogpunkt Deutsch Gaza (Goethe-Insitut) Tel: 282 0203, Fax: 282 1602

Fawanees Theatre GroupTelefax: 288 4403

French Cultural CentreTel: 286 7883, Fax: 282 8811 ccfgaza@consulfrance-jerusalem.org

Gaza Theatre Tel: 282 4860, Fax: 282 4870

Global Production and DistributionTelefax: 288 4399, art.global@yahoo.com

Holst Cultural Centre Tel: 281 0476, Fax: 280 8896, mcrcg@palnet.com

Theatre Day ProductionsTelefax: 283 6766, tdpgaza@palnet.com

Windows from Gaza For Contemporary Art Mob. 0599 781 227 - 0599 415 045 info@artwfg.ps

Palestinian Group for the Revival of Popular HeritageTelefax: 274 7945

Palestinian Heritage CenterTelefax: 274 2381, 274 2642mahasaca@palestinianheritagecenter.com www.phc.ps

Relief International - Schools Online Bethlehem Community-Based Learning and Action CenterTel: 277 7863

Sabreen Association for Artistic DevelopmentTel: 275 0091, Fax: 275 0092sabreen@sabreen.org, www.sabreen.org

Tent of NationsTel: 274 3071, Fax: 276 7446tnations@p-ol.com, www.tentofnations.org

The Edward Said National Conservatory of MusicTelefax: 274 8726info@ncm.birzeit.edu, www.birzeit.edu/music

The Higher Institute of MusicTelefax: 275 2492, highiom@hotmail.comwww.thehigherinstituteofmusic.ps

Turathuna - Centre for Palestinian Heritage (B.Uni.)Tel: 274 1241, Fax: 274 4440 pdaoud@bethlehem.edu, www.bethlehem.edu

HEBRON (02)

Al Sanabl Centre for Studies and HeritageTel: 256 0280, sanabelssc@yahoo.comwww.sanabl.org, www.sanabl.ps

Beit Et Tifl CompoundTelefax: 222 4545, tdphebron@alqudsnet.com

British Council- Palestine Polytechnic UniversityTelefax: 229 3717, information@ps.britishcouncil.org www.britsishcouncil.org.ps

Children Happiness CenterTelefax: 229 9545, children_hc@yahoo.comDura Cultural Martyrs CenterTel: 228 3663, nader@duramun.org www.duramun.org

AMIDEASTTel: 221 3301/2/3/4, Fax: 221 3305 Mob: 0599 097 531

France-Hebron Association for Cultural ExchangesTel: 222 4811info@hebron-france.org, wwww.hebron-france.org

Hebron Rehabilitation CommitteeTelfax: 225 5640, 222 6993/4

Palestinian Child Arts Center (PCAC)Tel: 222 4813, Fax: 222 0855 pcac@hotmail.com, www.pcac.net

The International Palestinian Youth League (IPYL)Tel:222 9131, Fax: 229 0652 itv@ipyl.org, www.ipyl.org

Yes TheaterTelefax: 229 1559, www.yestheatre.org, info@yestheatre.org

JERICHO (02)

Jericho Community CentreTelefax: 232 5007

Jericho Culture & Art CenterTelefax: 232 1047

Municipality TheatreTel: 232 2417, Fax: 232 2604

JENIN (04)

Cinema JeninTel: 250 2642, 250 2455info@cinemajenin.org, www.cinemajenin.org

Hakoura CenterTelfax: 250 4773 center@hakoura-jenin.ps, www.hakoura-jenin.ps

The Freedom Theatre/Jenin Refugee CampTel: 250 3345, info@thefreedomtheatre.org

NABLUS (09)

British Council- Al Najah UniversityTelefax: 237 5950information@ps.britishcouncil.org www.britishcoumcil.org/ps

Cultural Centre for Child DevelopmentTel: 238 6290, Fax: 239 7518nutaleb@hotmail.com, www.nutaleb.cjb.net

Cultural Heritage Enrichment CenterTel. 237 2863, Fax. 237 8275 arafatn24@yahoo.com

French Cultural CentreTel: 238 5914, Fax: 238 7593 ccfnaplouse@consulfrance-jerusalem.org

Nablus The CultureTel: 233 2084, Fax: 234 5325 info@nablusculture.ps, www.nablusculture.ps

RAMALLAH AND AL-BIREH (02)

A. M. Qattan FoundationTel: 296 0544, Fax: 298 4886 info@qattanfoundation.org www.qattanfoundation.org

Al Kasaba Theatre and CinemathequeTel: 296 5292/3, Fax: 296 5294 info@alkasaba.org, www.alkasaba.org

Al-Kamandjâti AssociationTel: 297 3101info@alkamandjati.com, www.alkamandjati.com

Al-Mada Music Therapy CenterTel: 241 3196, Fax: 241 3197info@al-mada.ps, www.al-mada.ps

Al-Rahhalah TheatreTelefax: 298 8091, alrahhalah@hotmail.com

Al-Rua’a Publishing HouseTel: 296 1613, Fax: 197 1265, Mob: 0599 259 874akel.nichola@gmail.com

AmideastTel: 240 8023, Fax: 240 8017 westbank-gaza@amideast.org, www.amideast.org

ArtSchool PalestineTel: 295 9837, info@artschoolpalestine.com www.artschoolpalestine.com

Ashtar for Theatre ProductionTel: 298 0037, Fax: 296 0326 info@ashtar-theatre.org, www.ashtar-theatre.org

Baladna Cultural CenterTelfax: 295 8435

Birzeit Ethnographic and Art Museum Tel. 298 2976, www.virtualgallery.birzeit.edu

British CouncilTel: 296 3293-6, Fax: 296 3297information@ps.britishcouncil.org www.britishcouncil.org/ps

Carmel Cultural FoundationTel: 298 7375, Fax: 298 7374

Dar Zahran Heritage BuildingTelfax: 296 3470, Mob: 0599 511 800info@darzahran.org, www.darzahran.org

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EAST JERUSALEM (02)

7 Arches HotelTel: 626 7777, Fax: 627 1319 svnarch@bezeqint.net, www.7arches.com

Addar Hotel (30 suites; bf; mr; res)Tel: 626 3111, Fax: 626 0791, www.addar-hotel.com

Alcazar Hotel (38 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 1111; Fax: 628 7360 admin@jrscazar.com, www.jrscazar.com

Ambassador Hotel (122 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 541 2222, Fax: 582 8202 reservation@jerusalemambassador.com www.jerusalemambassador.com

American Colony Hotel (84 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 627 9777, Fax: 627 9779 reserv@amcol.co.il, www.americancolony.com

Austrian HospiceTel: 626 5800, Fax: 627 1472office@austrianhospice.com, www.austrianhospice.com

Azzahra Hotel (15 rooms, res)Tel: 628 2447, Fax: 628 3960azzahrahotel@shabaka.net, www.azzahrahotel.com

Capitol Hotel (54 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 2561/2, Fax: 626 4352

Christmas HotelTel: 628 2588, Fax: 626 4417christmashotel@bezeqint.net, www.christmas-hotel.com

Commodore Hotel (45 rooms; cf; mr; res)Tel: 627 1414, Fax: 628 4701info@commodore-jer.com, www.commodore-jer.com

Gloria Hotel (94 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 628 2431, Fax: 628 2401, gloriahl@netvision.net.il

Golden Walls Hotel (112 rooms)Tel: 627 2416, Fax: 626 4658info@goldenwalls.com, www.goldenwalls.com

Holy Land Hotel (105 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 627 2888, Fax: 628 0265 info@holylandhotel.com, www.holylandhotel.com

ibis Styles Jerusalem Sheikh Jarrah (91 rooms)Tel: 578 3100, Fax: 578 3129, www.ibis.com

Jerusalem Hotel (14 rooms; bf; mr; res; live music)Tel: 628 3282, Fax: 628 3282 raed@jrshotel.com, www.jrshotel.com

Jerusalem Meridian Hotel (74 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 5212, Fax: 628 5214 www.jerusalem-meridian.com

Jerusalem Panorama Hotel (74 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 4887, Fax: 627 3699 panorama@alqudsnet.comwww.jerusalempanoramahotel.com

Hashimi HotelTel: 628 4410, Fax: 628 4667, info@hashimihotel.com

Knights Palace Guesthouse (50 rooms)Tel: 628 2537, Fax: 628 2401, kp@actcom.co.il

Legacy HotelTel: 627 0800, Fax: 627 7739 info@jerusalemlegacy.com, www.jerusalemlegacy.com

Metropol HotelTel: 628 2507, Fax: 628 5134

Mount of Olives Hotel (61 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 628 4877, Fax: 626 4427 info@mtolives.coml, www.mtolives.com

Mount Scopus Hotel (65 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 582 8891, Fax: 582 8825, mtscopus@netvision.net.il

National Hotel (99 rooms; bf; cr; res; cf)Tel: 627 8880, Fax: 627 7007www.nationalhotel-jerusalem.com

New Imperial Hotel (45 rooms)Tel: 627 2000, Fax: 627 1530

New Metropole Hotel (25 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 628 3846, Fax: 627 7485

New Swedish HostelTel: 627 7855, Fax: 626 4124 swedishhost@yahoo.com www.geocities.com/swedishhostel

Notre Dame Guesthouse (142 rooms, Su, bf, mr, cr, res, ter, cf, pf)Tel: 627 9111, Fax: 627 1995info@notredamecenter.org www.notredamecenter.org

Petra Hostel and HotelTel: 628 6618

Pilgrims Inn Hotel (16 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 627 2416, info@goldenwalls.com

Ritz Hotel Jerusalem (104 rooms, bf, mr)Tel: 626 9900, Fax: 626 9910reservations@jerusalemritz.comwww.jerusalemritz.com

Rivoli HotelTel: 628 4871, Fax: 627 4879

Savoy Hotel (17 rooms)Tel: 628 3366, Fax: 628 8040

Seven Arches Hotel (197 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 626 7777, Fax: 627 1319 svnarch@trendline.co.il

St. Andrew’s Scottish Guesthouse “The Scottie” (19 rooms +Self Catering Apartment)Tel: 673 2401, Fax: 673 1711standjer@netvision.net.il, www.scotsguesthouse.com

St George Hotel JerusalemTel: 627 7232 Fax: 627 7233 info@stgeorgehoteljerusalem.comwww.stgeorgehoteljerusalem.com

St. George’s Pilgrim Guest House (25 rooms; bf; res)Tel: 628 3302, Fax: 628 2253 sghostel@bezeqint.net

St. Thomas HomeTel: 628 2657, 627 4318, Fax: 626 4684aset@aset-future.com, www.aset-future.net

Strand Hotel (88 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 628 0279, Fax: 628 4826

Victoria Hotel (50 rooms; bf; res)Tel: 627 4466, Fax: 627 4171Info@4victoria-hotel.com, www.4victoria-hotel.com

BETHLEHEM (02)

Alexander Hotel (42 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 277 0780, Fax: 277 0782

Al-Salam Hotel (26 rooms; 6f; mr; cf; res)Tel: 276 4083/4, Fax: 277 0551, samhotel@p-ol.com

Angel Hotel Beit JalaTel: 276 6880, Fax: 276 6884info@angelhotel.ps, www.angelhotel.ps

Ararat Hotel (101 rooms, mr, ter, cf)Tel: 274 9888, Fax: 276 9887info@ararat-hotel.com, www.ararat–hotel.com

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Beit Al-Baraka Youth Hostel (19 rooms)Tel: 222 9288, Fax: 222 9288

Bethlehem Bible College Guest House (11 rooms; mr; pf)Tel: 274 1190, guesthouse@bethbc.org

Beit Ibrahim GuesthouseTel: 274 2613, Fax: 274 4250 reception@luthchurch.com www.abrahams-herberge.com

Bethlehem Hotel (209 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 277 0702, Fax: 277 0706, bhotel@p-ol.com

Bethlehem Inn (36 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 274 2424, Fax: 274 2423

Bethlehem Star Hotel (72 rooms; cf; bf; res)Tel: 274 3249 - 277 0285, Fax: 274 1494 htstar@palnet.com

Bethlehem youth hostelTelefax: 274 84 66, http://www.ejepal.org

Casanova Hospice (60 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 274 3981, Fax: 274 3540

Casanova Palace Hotel (25 rooms; bf; res)Tel: 274 2798, Fax: 274 1562

Dar Sitti Aziza HotelTelefax: 274 4848 info@darsittiaziza.com, www.darsittiaziza.com

El-Beit Guest House (Beit Sahour) (15 rooms)TeleFax: 277 5857, info@elbeit.org, www.elbeit.org

Everest Hotel (19 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 274 2604, Fax: 274 1278

Grand Hotel (107 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 274 1602 - 274 1440, Fax: 274 1604 info@grandhotelbethlehem.com

Golden Park Resort & Hotel (Beit Sahour) (66 rooms; res, bar, pool)Tel: 277 4414

Grand Park Hotel Bethlehem (Has 110 rooms located in 7 floors, main restaurant, dining room, conference room and bar.)Tel: 275 6400, Fax: 276 3736 info@grandpark.com, www.grandpark.com

Holy Family Hotel (90 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res;)Tel: 277 3432/3, Fax: 274 8650 holyfamilyhotel@hotmail.com www.holyfamilyhotel.com

Holy Land HotelTel: 277 8962/3, Fax: 277 8961holylandhotel@hotmail.com, www.holylandhotel.net

House of Hope GuesthouseTel: 274 2325, Fax: 274 0928Guesthouse@houseofhopemd.org

House of Peace HostelTel: 276 4739, www.houseofpeace.hostel.com/

Jacir Palace Hotel - Bethlehem (250 rooms; su; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6770

Lutheran Guesthouse “Abu Gubran”Tel: 277 0047, Guesthouse@diyar.ps, www.diyar.ps

Manger Square Hotel (220 Rooms; bf; cf; mr; res; cr)Tel: 277 8888, Fax: 277 8889 fabudayyeh@mangersquarehotel.com Web: www.mangersquarehotel.com

Murad Tourist ResortTel: 2759880, Fax:2759881, www.murad.ps

Nativity BELLS Hotel (95 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 274 8880, Fax: 274 8870 nativitybells@palnet.com, www.nativitybellshotel.ps

Nativity Hotel (89 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 277 0650, Fax: 274 4083 nativity@nativity-hotel.com, www.nativity-hotel.com

Olive Tree Hotel (20 rooms; 6 su; res; sp; bar; wifi-lobby)Tel: 276 4660 Fax: 275 3807olivetreehotel@yahoo.comFacebook: olive tree tourist village

Paradise Hotel (166 rooms;cf;bf;mr;res;su;pf)Tel: 274 4542/3 - 274 4544, paradise@p-ol.com

St. Antonio Hotel (36 rooms; mr; cf;res;pf)Tel: 276 6221, Fax: 276 6220

Saint Gabriel HotelTel: 275 9990, Fax: 275 9991 Reservation@st-gabrielhtel.com www.st-gabrielhotel.com

Saint Michael HotelTel: 276 9921/2/3, Fax: 277 2244info@saintmichaelhotel.com www.saintmichaelhotel.com

Santa Maria Hotel (83 rooms; mr; res)Tel: 276 7374/5/6, Fax: 276 7377, smaria@p-ol.com

Shepherd HotelTel: 274 0656, Fax: 274 4888 info@shepherdhotel.com, www.shepherdhotel.com

Shepherds’ House Hotel (Facilities: Restaurant and Bar, WiFi)Tel: 275 9690, Fax: 275 9693

St. Nicholas Hotel (25 rooms; res; mr)Tel: 274 3040/1/2, Fax: 274 3043

Saint Vincent Guest House (36 rooms)Tel: 276 0967/8, Fax: 276 0970svincent@p-ol.com, www.saintvincentguesthouse.net

Talita Kumi Guest House (22 rooms; res; mr; cf)Tel: 274 1247, Fax: 274 1847

Zaituna Tourist VillageTel: 275 0655

JERICHO (02)

Al- Zaytouna Guest House (7 rooms; bf; res; mr)Telefax: 274 2016 Deir Hijleh MonasteryTel: 994 3038, 0505 348 892

Hisham Palace HotelTel: 232 2414, Fax: 232 3109

Oasis Jericho Hotel (181 rooms; su; bf; cf; mr; res; ter; tb)Tel: 231 1200, Fax: 231 1222reservation@oasis-jericho.ps

Jericho Resort Village (60 rooms; 46 studios; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 232 1255, Fax: 232 2189 reservation@jerichoresorts.com www.jerichoresorts.com

Jerusalem Hotel (22 rooms)Tel: 232 2444, Fax: 992 3109

Telepherique & Sultan Tourist Center (55 rooms)Tel: 232 1590, Fax: 232 1598 info@jericho-cablecar.com

HEBRON (02)

Hebron HotelTel: 225 4240 / 222 9385, Fax: 222 6760hebron_hotel@hotmail.com

NABLUS (09)

Al-Qaser Hotel (48 rooms; 7 regular suites, 1 royal suite; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: 2341 444, Fax: 2341 944 alqaser@alqaserhotel.com, www.alqaserhotel.com

Al-Yasmeen Hotel & Souq (30 rooms; cf; mr; res)Tel: 233 3555 Fax: 233 3666 yasmeen@palnet.com, www.alyasmeen.com

Asia Hotel (28 rooms, res)Telefax: 238 6220

Chrystal Motel (12 rooms)Telefax: 233 3281

International Friends Guesthouse (Hostel) (mr; res; ter; cf; pf)Telfax: 238 1064ifriends.house@gmail.com, www.guesthouse.ps

RAMALLAH and AL-BIREH (02)

Al-A’in Hotel (24 rooms and suites; mr; cf)Tel: 240 5925 - 240 4353, Fax: 240 4332alainhotel@hotmail.com

Aladdin Hotel (27 rooms bf; mr; ter)Tel: 240 7689, Fax: 240 7687, Mob. 0598 308 382aladdinhotel1@gmail.com, www.thealaddinhotel.com

Al-Bireh Tourist Hotel (50 rooms; cf; res)Telefax: 240 0803

Al-Hajal Hotel (22 rooms; bf)Telefax: 298 7858

Al Hambra Palace (Hotel Suites and Resort)Tel: 295 6226 - 295 0031, Fax: 295 0032alhambrapalace1@gmail.comwww.alhambra-palace-hotel.com

AlZahra SuitesTel: 242 3019alzahrasuites@yahoo.com, www.alzahrasuites.ps

Al-Wihdah HotelTelefax: 298 0412

Ankars Suites and Hotel (40 Suites & Rooms, su,mr,bf,cr,res,ter,cf,gm,pf)Tel: 295 2602, Fax: 295 2603, Info@ankars.psArea: D Hostel (50 beds, 2 private appartments)Mob: 0569 349 042, Info@RamallahHostel.com

Beauty InnTel: 296 6477, Fax: 296 6479beauty.inn@hotmail.com, www.beautyinn.ps

Best Eastern Hotel (91 rooms; cf; res)Tel: 296 0450, Fax: 295 8452, besteastern@jrol.com

Caesar Hotel (46 rooms & su, 2 mr, cr, res, cf)Tel: 297 9400, Fax: 297 9401reservation@caesar-hotel.ps, www.caesar-hotel.ps

City Inn Palace Hotel (47 rooms; bf; cf; res)Tel: 240 8080, Fax: 240 8091cityinnpalace@gmail.com, www.cityinnpalace.com

Grand Park Hotel & Resorts (84 rooms; 12 grand suites; bf; cf; mr; res; sp; pf)Tel: 298 6194, Fax: 295 6950, info@grandpark.com

Gemzo Suites (90 executive suites; cs; mr; pf; gm; res) Tel: 240 9729, Fax: 240 9532gemzo@palnet.com, www.gemzosuites.net

Garden Suites and Restaurant (22 suites (su, res, pf)Tel: 298 8885, Fax: 298 8876, info@gardensuite.net

Manarah HotelTel: 295 2122, Telefax: 295 3274manarah@hotmail.com, www.manarahhotel.com.ps

Merryland Hotel (25 rooms)Tel: 298 7176, Telefax: 298 7074

Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah (171 rooms and Su; bf; mr; cr; res;ter; cf; gm; pf; sp)Tel: 298 5888, Fax: 298 533 hotel.ramallah@moevenpick.com hotel.ramallah.reservation@moevenpick.com www.moevenpick-ramallah.com

Rocky Hotel (22 rooms; cf; res; ter)Tel: 296 4470, Telefax: 296 1871

Palestine Plaza Hotel (100 rooms and suites; bf; res; gym; cf)Tel: 294 6888, Fax: 297 3574reservations@palestineplazahotel.com

Pension Miami (12 rooms)Telefax: 295 6808

Ramallah Hotel (22 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 295 3544, Fax: 295 5029

Reef Pension (Jifna village) (8 rooms; res)Telefax: 2810881, www.reefhousepension.ps

Retno Hotel (33 rooms & su; res; mr; gm; sp)Telefax: 295 0022, Retno@retnohotel.com www.retnohotel.com

Royal Court Suite Hotel (39 rooms; res; mr; ter; cf; pf; i)Tel: 296 4040, Fax: 296 4047info@rcshotel.com, www.rcshotel.com

Summer Bar (Ankars Garden)Tel: 295 2602

Star Mountain Guesthouse (10 rooms; wifi; pf)Tel: 296 2705, Telefax: 296 2715starmountaincenter@gmail.com

GAZA STRIP (08)

Adam Hotel (76 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Telefax: 282 3521/19, Fax: 282 5580

Al-Deira (22 Suits; cf; mr; res; ter)Tel: 283 8100/200/300, Fax: 283 8400 info@aldeira.ps, www.aldeira.ps

Al Mashtal HotelTel: 283 2500, Fax: 283 2510mashtal@arcmedhotels.com www.almashtalarcmedhotels.com

Almat’haf HotelTel: 285 8444, Fax: 285 8440info@almathaf.ps, www.almathaf.ps

Al-Quds In ter na tional Hotel (44 rooms; 2 suites; bf; mr; res)Telefax: 282 5181, 282 6223, 286 3481, 282 2269

Beach Hotel (25 rooms; bf; mr; res)Telefax: 282 5492, 284 8433

Commodore Gaza Hotel (60 rooms;su; bf)Tel: 283 4400, Fax: 282 2623

Gaza International Hotel (30 rooms; bf; cf; res)Tel: 283 0001/2/3/4, Fax: 283 0005

Grand Palace Hotel (20 rooms; cr; mr; cf; res)Tel: 284 9498/6468, Fax: 284 9497

Marna House (17 rooms; bf; mr; res)Tel: 282 2624, Fax: 282 3322

Palestine Hotel (54 rooms; bf; cf; mr; res)Tel: Tel: 282 3355, Fax: 286 0056

JENIN (04)

Cinema Jenin Guesthouse (7 rooms; 2 su)Tel: 250 2455, Mob: 0599 317 968guesthouse@cinemajenin.org, www.cinemajenin.org

Haddad Hotel & ResortTel: 241 7010/1/2, Fax: 241 7013haddadbooking@ymail.com www.haddadtourismvillage.com

North Gate HotelTel: 243 5700, Fax: 243 5701info@northgate-hotel.com, www.northgate-hotel.com

Key: su = suites, bf = business facilities; mr = meeting rooms, cr = conference facilities; res = restaurant, ter = terrace bar; tb = turkish bath, cf = coffee shop; gm = gym; pf = parking facilities, sp = swimming pool

7978

EAST JERUSALEM (02)

Al-Diwan (Ambassador Hotel) Middle Eastern, French, and Italian CuisineTel: 541 2213, Fax: 582 8202

Alhambra Palace Jerusalem Restaurant & coffee shopTel: 626 3535, Fax: 6263737 info@alhambrapalacej.com

Al-Manakeesh Pizza & PastriesTel: 585 6928

Al-Shuleh Grill Shawerma and BarbecuesTel: 627 3768

Amigo Emil Middle Eastern, American, Indian, and Italian Cuisine Tel: 628 8090, Fax: 626 1457

Antonio’s (Ambassador Hotel) Middle Eastern, French, and Italian CuisineTel: 541 2213

Arabesque, Poolside, and Patio Restaurants (American Colony Hotel) Western and Middle Eastern MenuTel: 627 9777, Fax: 627 9779

Armenian Tavern Armenian and Middle Eastern FoodTel: 627 3854

Askidinya Italian and French CuisineTel: 532 4590

Az-Zahra Oriental food and PizzaTel: 628 2447

Borderline Restaurant Café Italian and Oriental MenuTel: 532 8342

Burghoulji Armenian and Middle EasternTel: 628 2072, Fax: 628 2080

Cardo Restaurant Continental CuisineTel: 627 0800

Chinese Restaurant Chinese Cuisine Tel: 626 3465, Fax: 626 3471

Educational Bookshop Books and CoffeeTel: 627 5858

El Dorada Coffee Shop and Internet Café Chocolates, Coffee, and Internet Tel: 626 0993

Flavours Grill International Cuisine with Mediterranean FlavourTel: 627 4626

Four Seasons Restaurants and Coffee Shop Barbecues and Shawerma Tel: 628 6061, Fax: 628 6097

Gallery Café Snacks and BeveragesTel: 540 9974

Garden’s RestaurantTel: 581 6463

Goodies Fast FoodTel: 585 3223

Kan Zaman (Jerusalem Hotel) Mediterranean Cuisine Tel: 627 1356

Lotus and Olive Garden (Jerusalem Meridian Hotel) Middle Eastern and Continental CuisineTel: 628 5212

Nafoura Middle Eastern MenuTel: 626 0034

Nakashian Gallery Café Tel: 627 8077

La Rotisserie (Notre Dame Hotel) Gourmet Restaurant, European and Mediterranean MenuTel: 627 9114, Fax: 627 1995

Dina Café Coffee and PastryTel: 626 3344

Panoramic Golden City Barbecues Tel: 628 4433, Fax: 627 5224

Pasha’s Oriental FoodTel: 582 5162, 532 8342

Patisserie Suisse Fast Food and BreakfastTel: 628 4377

Petra Restaurant Oriental Cuisine Tel: 627 7799

Pizza House Pizza and Oriental PastryTel: 627 3970, 628 8135

Quick LunchTel: 628 4228

RIO Grill and Subs Italian and French CuisineTel: 583 5460

Rossini’s Restaurant Bar French and Italian Cuisine Tel: 628 2964

Philadelphia Restaurant Mediterranean Menu Tel: 532 2626, Fax: 532 2636

Shalizar Restaurant Middle Eastern, Mexican, and Italian Cuisine Tel: 582 9061

The Gate Café Fresh Juices, Coffee, and TeaTel: 627 4282

The Scots Bistro Coffee and PastryTel: 673 2401, Fax: 673 1711

The Patio (Christmas Hotel) Oriental and European MenuTel: 628 2588, 626 4418

Turquoise Lebanese RestaurantTel: 627 7232, Fax: 627 7233

Versavee Bistro (Bar and Café) Oriental and Western FoodTel: 627 6160

Victoria Restaurant Middle Eastern and Arabic MenuTel: 628 3051, Fax: 627 4171

Wake up RestaurantTel: 627 8880

Zad Rest. & CaféTel: 627 7454, 627 2525

BETHLEHEM (02)

1890 Restaurant (Beit-Jala)Tel: 277 8779 restaurant.1890@gmail.com

Abu Eli Restaurant Middle Eastern and BarbecuesTel. 274 1897

Abu Shanab Restaurant BarbecuesTel: 274 2985

Afteem Restaurant Oriental CuisineTel: 274 7940

Al-Areesheh Palace (autumn and winter) (Jacir Palace) Middle Eastern and BarbecuesTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6154

Al-Hakura Restaurant Middle Eastern and Fast FoodTel: 277 3335

Al-Areesheh Tent (spring and summer) (Jacir Palace) Middle Eastern and BarbecuesTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6154

Al Makan Bar (Jacir Palace) Snack BarTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6770

Balloons Coffee Shop and PizzaTel: 275 0221, Fax: 277 7115

Barbara RestaurantTel: 274 0130 barbra.rest1@hotmail.com

Beit Sahour Citadel Mediterranean CuisineTel: 277 7771

Bonjour Restaurant and Café Coffee Shop and Continental Cuisine Tel: 274 0406

Christmas Bells Restaurants Oriental CuisineTel: 277 6336, Fax: 277 6337

Dar al-Balad Continental Cuisine Tel: 274 9073

Divano Café and RestaurantTel: 275 7276 divanocafe@gmail.com

Grotto Restaurant Barbecues and Taboon Tel: 274 8844, Fax: 274 8889

Golden Roof Continental CuisineTel: 274 3224

King Gaspar Restaurant & Bar (Italian, Asian and Mediterranean Cuisine)Tel: 276 5301, Fax: 276 5302

Il’iliyeh Restaurant Continental Cuisine Tel: 277 0047

Layal Lounge Snack BarTel: 275 0655

La Terrasse Middle Eastern and Continental CuisineTel: 275 3678

Limoncello (Beit Jala)Tel: 275 8844, Fax: 275 8833

Little ItalyTel: 275 5161

Mariachi (Grand Hotel) Seafood and Mexican CuisineTel: 274 1440, 274 1602/3Fax: 274 1604

Massina (Breakfast)Tel: 274 9110

Noah’s Snack/ Ararat Hotel Snack Food Tel: 749 888, Fax: 276 9887

Palmeras Gastropub Continental Cuisine Telefax: 275 6622

Peace Restaurant & Bar Pasta, Seafood, Steaks & Middle EasternTel: 0595 187 622

Al-Riwaq Restaurant and Coffee Shop snacks and cakes (Jacir Palace – InterContinental Bethlehem) Coffee Shop and Sandwiches Tel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6754

Roots Lounge (Beit Sahour)Tel: 0598 333 665

The Tent Restaurant (Shepherds’ Valley Village) BarbecuesTel: 277 3875, Fax: 277 3876

Sima caféTel: 275 2058

Singer caféMob. 0597 492 175

St. George Restaurant Oriental Cuisine and BarbecuesTel: 274 3780, Fax: 274 1833st.george_restaurant@yahoo.com

Tachi Chinese Chinese Cuisine Tel: 274 4382

Taboo – Restaurant and Bar Oriental and Continental Cuisine Tel: 274 0711, Mob: 0599 205 158

The Square Restaurant and Coffee Shop Mediterranean CuisineTel: 274 9844

Zaitouneh (Jacir Palace) Continental CuisineTel: 276 6777, Fax: 276 6154

JERICHO (02)

Al-Nafoura Restaurant (Jericho Resort Village) Arabic Cuisine and Barbecues Tel: 232 1255, Fax: 232 2189

Al-Rawda Barbecues Telefax: 232 2555

Green Valley Park Oriental Cuisine and Barbecues Tel: 232 2349

Jabal Quruntul Continental Cuisine (Open Buffet) Tel: 232 2614, Fax: 232 2659

Limoneh Continental Cuisine Tel: 231 2977, Fax: 231 2976

NABLUS (09)

Salim Afandi Barbecues and Oriental Cuisine Tel: 237 1332

Qasr al-Jabi restaurantTel: 238 4180

Zeit Ou Zaater (Al-Yasmeen Hotel) Continental Cuisine and PastriesTel: 238 3164, Fax: 233 3666

RAMALLAH AND AL-BIREH (02)

911 Café Mexican, Italian, OrientalTel: 296 5911

Andareen PubMob: 0599 258 435

Al Falaha Msakhan and Taboun Tel: 290 5124

Akasha OrientalTel: 295 9333

Allegro Italian Restaurant (Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah) Italian fine cuisineTel: 298 5888

Al- Riwaq All-day-dining restaurant (Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah) International, Swiss and Oriental cuisineTel: 298 5888

Awjan Seafood, Breakfast, and Pizza, Coffee Shop, Lebanese and Italian Cuisine Tel: 297 1776

Andre’s Restaurant French and Italian Cuisine Tel: 296 6477/8

Angelo’s Western Menu and PizzaTel: 295 6408, 298 1455

Ayysha Restaurant Oriental CuisineTel: 296 6622

Azure Restaurant and Coffee Shop Continental Cuisine Telefax: 295 7850

Baladna Ice Cream Ice Cream and Soft DrinksTelefax: 295 6721

Bel Mondo Italian CuisineTel: 298 6759

Caesar’s (Grand Park Hotel) Continental Cuisine Tel: 298 6194

Café De La Paix French CuisineTel: 298 0880

Castana CaféTel: 297 1114

Castello Restaurant & Café OrientalTel: 297 3844/55

Chinese House Restaurant Chinese Cuisine Tel: 296 4081

Clara restaurant and pubMob: 0597 348 335

Dauod BashaTel: 297 4655

Darna Continental Cuisine Tel: 295 0590/1

Diwan Art Coffee Shop Continental CuisineTel: 296 6483

Do Re Mi Café (Royal Court) Continental Cuisine Tel: 296 4040

Elite Coffee House Italian and Arabic CuisineTel: 296 5169

European Coffee Shop Coffee and SweetsTel: 2951 7031, 296 6505

Express Pizza American PizzaTel: 296 6566

Fakhr El-Din Lebanese CuisineTel: 294 6800

Fawanees Pastries and Fast FoodTel: 298 7046

Fatuta Reataurant Barbecues, (Birzeit)Mob. 0599 839 043

Fuego Mexican and Tapas GrillTel: 29 59426 - 1700 999 888

Jasmine CaféTel: 295 0121

Janan’s KitchenTel: 297 5444

K5M - Caterers Cake and SweetsTel: 295 6813

Khuzama Restaurant Oriental Cuisine Tel: 298 8289

La Vie Café Cafe, Bistro & BarTel: 296 4115

La Vista Café and Restaurant Oriental and Western Cuisine Tel: 296 3271

Level 5 Fusion EuropeanTel: 298 8686

Cann Espresso Arabic and Italian Cuisine Tel: 297 2125

Mac Simon Pizza and Fast FoodTel: 297 2088

Martini Bar (Caesar Hotel)Tel: 297 9400

Mr. Donuts Café Donuts and Coffee ShopTel: 240 7196

Mr. Fish SeafoodTel: 295 9555

Mr. Pizza Pizza and Fast Food Tel: 240 3016, 240 8182

Muntaza Restaurant and Garden Barbecues and Sandwiches Tel: 295 6835

Na3Na3 Café Italian and Oriental Cuisine Tel: 296 4606

Nai Resto Café - ArgeelehMob: 0595 403 020

Newz Bar Lounge and “Le Gourmet” pastries’ corner

Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah Tel: 298 5888

Osama’s Pizza Pizza and Fast Food Tel: 295 3270

Orjuwan Lounge Palestinian-Italian Fusion Tel: 297 6870

8180

Rama café Resto/BarTel: 298 5376

Palestine Revolving Restaurant (23rd floor, Palestine Trade Tower)Tel: 294 6888, Fax: 297 3574

Peter’s Place Restaurant & Bar (Taybeh) Palestinian CuisineTel: 289 8054, Mob: 0547 043 029

Pesto Café and Restaurant Italian Cuisine Tel: 297 0705, 297 0706

Pizza Inn Pizza and Fast FoodTel: 298 1181/2/3

Philadelphia Restaurant Middle Eastern Menu Tel: 295 1999

Philistia Restaurant & Catering Palestinian cuisineTel: 298 9051

Plaza Jdoudna Restaurant and Park Middle Eastern Menu Tel: 295 6020, Fax: 296 4693

Pronto Resto-Café Italian Cuisine Tel: 298 7312

QMHTel: 297 34511

Roma Café Italian Light FoodTel: 296 4228

Rukab’s Ice Cream Ice Cream and Soft DrinksTel: 295 3467

Saba Sandwiches Falafel and Sandwiches Tel: 296 0116

Samer Middle Eastern Food Tel: 240 5338 - 240 3088

ScoopTel: 295 9189

Sangria’s French, Italian, and Mexican Cuisine Tel: 295 6808

Sinatra Gourmet Italian and American CuisineTel: 297 1028

Sky Bar (Ankars Suites and Hotel) Continental Cuisine Tel: 295 2602

Sky Gate Terrace and BarTel: 294 6888, Fax: 297 3574

Sushi Restaurant (Caesar Hotel) Tel: 297 9400

Mövenpick Hotel Ramallah Tel: 298 5888

Stones Continental Cuisine Tel: 296 6038

Tabash (Jifna Village) Barbecues Tel: 281 0932

Tal El-Qamar Roof Middle Eastern and Western MenuTel: 298 7905/ 6

TCHE TCHETel: 296 4201

The Vine Restaurant Continental Cuisine Mob: 0595 403 020, 0568 403 020

THE Q GARDEN Roof-top garden International CusineTel: 295 7727

Tomasso’s Pizza and Fast Food Tel: 240 9991/ 2

Tropicana Mexican Cuisine, Oriental Menu, and ZarbTel: 297 5661

UpTown (Ankars Suites and Hotel) Continental Cuisine Tel: 295 2602

Values Restaurant International and SeafoodTel: 296 6997

Vatche’s Garden Restaurant European Style Tel: 296 5966, 296 5988

Zam’n Premium Coffee Coffee Shop StyleTel: 295 0600

Zaki Taki Sandwiches Tel: 296 3643

Zam’n Premium Coffee Masyoun Coffee Shop StyleTel: 298 1033

Zarour Bar BQ Barbecues and Oriental Cuisine Tel: 295 6767, 296 4480Fax: 296 4357

Zeit ou Zaater Pastries and SnacksTel: 295 4455

Ziryab Barbecues, Italian, and Oriental CuisineTel: 295 9093

GAZA STRIP (08)

Al Daar BarbecuesTel: 288 5827

Al-Deira Mediterranean Cuisine Tel: 283 8100/200/300 Fax: 2838400

Almat’haf Mediterranean CuisineTel: 285 8444, Fax: 285 8440

Al-Molouke Shawerma Tel: 286 8397

Al-Salam Seafood Tel: 282 2705, Telefax: 283 3188

Avenue Tel: 288 2100, 288 3100

Big Bite FastfoodTel: 283 3666

Carino’sTel: 286 6343, Fax: 286 6353

LATERNATel: 288 9881, Fax: 288 9882

Light HouseTel: 288 4884

Marna HouseTelefax: 282 3322, 282 2624

Mazaj Coffee HouseTel: 286 8035

Mazaj ResturantTel: 282 5003, Fax: 286 9078

Orient HouseTelefax: 282 8008, 282 8604

Roots - The Club Oriental Cuisine Tel: 288 8666, 282 3999, 282 3777

Abu Mazen RestaurantTel: 221 3833, Fax: 229 3111

Al Quds RestaurantTel: 229 7773, Fax: 229 7774

Golden RoosterTelefax: 221 6115

Hebron RestaurantTelefax: 222 7773

Orient House RestaurantTelefax: 221 1525

Royal RestaurantTel: 222 7210

East Jerusalem (02) Armenian Museum, Old City, Tel: 628 2331, Fax: 626 4861, Opening hours: Mon.- Sat. from 9:00 - 16:30 • Dar At Tifl Museum (Dar At Tifl Association), Near the Orient House, Tel: 628 3251, Fax: 627 3477 • Islamic Museum (The Islamic Waqf Asso ciation), Old City, Tel: 628 3313, Fax: 628 5561, opening hours for tourists: daily from 7:30 - 13:30 • Math Museum, Science Museum, Abu Jihad Museum for the Palestinian Prisoners Studies - Al-Quds University, Tel: 279 9753 - 279 0606, foryou@alquds.edu, opening hours Saturday - Wednesday 8:30 - 15:00 • Qalandia Camp Women’s Handicraft Coop., Telefax: 656 9385, Fax: 585 6966, qalandia@palnet.com • WUJOUD Museum, Tel: 626 0916, Fax: 0272625, info@wujoud.org, www.wujoud.org

Bethlehem (02) Al-Balad Museum for Olive Oil Production, Tel: 274 1581, Opening hours: 8:00-14:30 Monday through Saturday • Baituna al Talhami Museum, (Folklore Museum) Arab Women’s Union, Tel: 274 2589, Fax: 274 2431, Opening hours: daily from 8:00 - 13:00/ 14:00 - 17:00 except for Sundays and Thursdays afternoon • Bethlehem Peace Center Museum, Tel: 276 6677, Fax: 274 1057, info@peacenter.org, www.peacenter.org, Opening hours: daily from 10:00-18:00 except Sundays from 10:00 - 16:00 • International Nativity Museum, Telefax: 276 0076, nativitymuseum@salesianbethlehem.com, www.internationalnativitymuseum.com • Natural History Museum, Telefax:02-276 5574, eec@p-ol.com, www.eecp.org • Artas Old Village House/Museum, Mob: 0597 524 524, 0599 679 492, 0502 509 514, artasfc@hotmail.com, Opening Hours: By Appointment • Palestinian Heritage Center, Telefax: 274 2381, mahasaca@palestinianheritagecenter.com, www.palestinianheritagecenter.com

Gaza (08) Al Mathaf, Tel: 285 8444, info@almathaf.ps, www. almathaf.ps

Jericho (02) Russian Museum Park Complex, Mob. 0595 076 143

Ramallah & Al-Bireh (02) Museum of Palestinian Popular Heritage - In’ash el Usra, In’ash el Usra society, Al-Bireh, Tel: 240 2876, Fax: 240 1544, Opening hours: daily from 8:00 - 15:00 except Fridays • Ramallah Museum, Al-Harajeh St., Across from Arab Bank, Old Town, Ramallah, Telefax: 295 9561, open daily from 8:00 - 15:00 except friday and Saturday • Saadeh Science House (Alnayzak Science and technology Museum) - Alhaq 1 st. - Old city of Birzeit, Tel. 02-2819040, opening hours Sunday to Thursday from 9:00 - 18:00 • The Birzeit University Ethnographic and Art Museum Tel: 298 2976, vtamari@birzeit.edu, Opening hours: daily from 10:00 - 15:00 except for Fridays and Sundays • The Palestinian Museum, Tel: 297 4797/98, Fax: 297 4795, info@palmuseum.org, www.palmuseum.org

East Jerusalem (02) Car Rental • Car & Drive, Tel: 656 5562/3 • Dallah Al-Barakah, Tel: 656 4150 • Good Luck, Tel: 627 7033, Fax: 627 7688 • Green Peace Rent A Car Ltd., Telefax: 585 9756 • Jerusalem Car Rental & Leasing ltd., Tel: 582 2179, Fax: 582 2173 • Orabi, Tel: 585 3101 • Middle East Car Rental, Tel: 626 2777, Fax: 626 2203, mecarrental@gmail.com • Taxis Abdo,Tel: 585 8202 (Beit Hanina), Tel: 628 3281 (Damascus Gate) • Al-Eman Taxi & Lemo Service, Tel: 583 4599 - 583 5877 • Al-Rashid, Tel: 628 2220 • Al-Aqsa, Tel: 627 3003 • Beit Hanina, Tel: 585 5777 • Holy Land, Tel: 585 5555 • Imperial, Tel: 628 2504 • Jaber - Petra, Tel: 583 7275 - 583 7276 • Khaled Al-Tahan, Tel: 585 5777 • Mount of Olives, Tel: 627 2777 • Panorama, Tel: 628 1116 • Tourist Trans por tation Abdo Tourist, Tel: 628 1866 • Jerusalem of Gold, Tel: 673 7025/6 • Kawasmi Tourist Travel Ltd., Tel: 628 4769, Fax: 628 4710 • Mount of Olives, Tel: 627 1122 • Mahfouz Tourist Travel,

Tel: 628 2212, Fax: 628 4015 • Bethlehem (02) Car Rental Murad, Tel: 274 7092 • Nativity Rent a Car, Tel: 274 3532, Fax: 274 7053 Taxis Asha’b, Tel: 274 2309 • Beit Jala, Tel: 274 2629 • Al Fararjeh Taxi - 24 Hours,

Tel: 275 2416 • Hebron (02) Car Rental Holy Land, Tel: 222 0811 • Taxis Al-Asdiqa’, Tel: 222 9436 •

Al-Itihad, Tel: 222 8750 • Jericho (02) Taxis Petra, Tel: 232 2525 • Nablus (09) Car Rental Orabi,

Tel: 238 3383 • Taxis Al-Ittimad, Tel: 237 1439 • Al-Madina, Tel: 237 3501 • Ramallah and Al-Bireh (02) Car Rental Abe Car Services, Mob: 0595 604 062, 054 981 2946 • AL Kerish Auto Rent, Beitunial, Tel: 290 6662 • Orabi, Tel: 240 3521 • Petra, Tel: 295 2602 • TWINS, Tel: 296 4688 • Taxis A.B.E. Car Services (yellow plate), 0598-36-1818 • Al-Bireh, Tel: 240 2956 • Al-Masyoun Taxi, Tel: 295 2230 • Al-Salam, Tel: 295 5805 • Al-Wafa, Tel: 295 5444 • Al-Itihad, Tel: 295 5887 • Hinnawi Taxi, Tel: 295 6302 • Omaya, Tel:

295 6120 • SAHARA Rent a Car Co., Tel: 297 5317/8 • Shamma’ Taxi Co., Tel: 296 0957 • Gaza Strip (08) Car Rental Al-Ahli, Tel: 282 8534 • Al-Farouq, Tel: 284 2755 • Imad, Tel: 286 4000 • Luzun, Tel: 282 2628 • Taxis Al-Nasser, Tel: 286 1844, 286 7845 • Al-Wafa, Tel: 284 9144 - 282 4465 • Azhar, Tel: 286 8858 • Midan Filastin, Tel: 286 5242

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East Jerusalem (02) 4M Travel Agency, Tel: 627 1414, Fax: 628 4701, info@4m-travel.com, www.4m-travel.com • Abdo Tourist & Travel, Tel: 628 1865, Fax: 627 2973, abdotours@hotmail.com • Aeolus Travel & Tours , Tel: 627 1731 Fax: 627 1719, azgsa@aeolus-travel.com • Albina Tours Ltd., Tel: 628 3397, Fax: 628 1215, albina@netvision.net.il; info@albinatours.com, www.albinatours.com • Alliance Travel Solutions, Tel: 581 7102, Fax: 581 7103, info@alliancetravel-jrs.com, www.alliancetravel-jrs.com • Arab Tourist Agency (ATA), Tel: 627 7442, Fax: 628 4366,george@atajrs.com • Atic Tours & Travel Ltd., Tel: 628 6159, Fax: 626 4023, info@atictour.com, www.atictour.com • Awad & Co. Tourist Agency, Tel: 628 4021, Fax: 628 7990, admin@awad-tours.com, www.awad-tours.com • Aweidah Bros. Co., Tel: 6282365, towertours@alqudsnet.com • B. Peace Tours & Travel, Tel: 626 1876, Fax: 626 2065, b.peacetours@bezeqint.net • Bible Land Tours, Tel: 627 1169, Fax: 627 2218, links@palnet.com • Blessed Land Tours, Tel: 628 6592, Fax: 628 5812, blt@blessedlandtours.com, www.blessedlandtours.com • Carawan Tours and Travel, Tel: 582 1273, Fax: 532 1593, info@carawan-tours.com, www.carawan-tours.com, Skype: carawantour.amin • Daher Travel, Tel: 628 3235, Fax: 627 1574, dahert@netvision.net.il, www.dahertravel.com • Dajani Palestine Tours, Tel: 626 4768, Fax: 627 6927, dajani@netvision.net.il • Dakkak Tours Agency, Tel: 628 2525, Fax: 628 2526, dakkak@netmedia.net.il • Destination Middle East, info@destination-middle-east.com • Dynamic Links Travel and Tourism Bureau, Tel: 628 4724, Fax: 628 4714, dynamic.links@dynamic-links.net • George Garabedian Co., Tel: 628 3398, Fax: 628 7896, ggc@ggc-jer.com • GEMM Travel, Tel: 628 2535/6, sales@gemmtravel.com • Guiding Star Ltd., Tel: 627 3150, Fax: 627 3147, mark@guidingstar2.com, www.guidingstarltd.com • Holy Jerusalem Tours & Travel, Tel: 540 1668; Fax: 540 0963, info@holyjerusalemtours.com, www.holyjerusalemtours.com • Holy Land Tours, Tel: 532 3232, Fax: 532 3292, info@holylandtours.biz • Jata Travel Ltd., Tel: 627 5001, Fax: 627 5003, jatatraveltd@hotmail.com • Jiro Tours, Tel: 627 3766, Fax: 628 1020, jiro@netvision.net.il, www.jirotours.com • Jordan Travel Agency, Tel: 628 4052, Fax: 628 7621 • Jerusalem Orient Tourist Travel, Tel : 628 8722, Fax: 627 4589, hamdi@jottweb.com • JT & T, Tel: 628 9418, 628 9422, Fax: 628 9298, jtt@bezeqint.net.il, www.jttours.com • KIM’s Tourist & Travel Agency, Tel: 627 9725, Fax: 627 4626, kim@shabaka.net, www.kimstours.com • Lawrence Tours & Travel, Tel: 628 4867, Fax: 627 1285, info@lawrence-tours.com • Lions Gate Travel & Tours, Tel: 627 7829, Fax: 627 7830, Mobile: 0523 855 312, info@lionsgate-travel.com • Lourdes Tourist & Travel Agency, Tel: 627 5332, Telefax: 627 5336, lourdestravel@bezeqint.net • Mt. of Olives Tours Ltd., Tel: 627 1122, Fax: 628 5551 moot@netvision.net.il, www.olivetours.com • Nawas Tourist Agency Ltd., Tel: 628 2491, Fax: 628 5755 • Nazarene Tours and Travel, Tel: 627 4636, Fax: 627 7526 • Near East Tourist Agency (NET), Tel: 532 8706, Fax: 532 8701, Jerusalem@netours.com, www.netours.com • O.S. Hotel Services, Tel: 628 9260, Fax: 626 4979, os@os-tours.com • Overseas Travel Bureau, Tel: 628 7090, Fax: 628 4442, otb@netvision.net.il • Priority Travel and Tours LTD., Tel: 627 4207, Fax: 627 4107 • Safieh Tours & Travel Agency, Tel: 626 4447, Fax: 628 4430, safiehtours@bezeqint.net • Samara Tourist & Travel Agency, Tel: 627 6133. Fax: 627 1956, info@samaratours.com • Shepherds Tours & Travel, Tel: 6284121- 6287859, Fax: 6280251, info@shepherdstours.com, www.shepherdstours.com • Shweiki Tours Ltd., Tel: 673 6711, Fax: 673 6966 • Sindbad Travel Tourist Agency, Tel: 627 2165, Fax: 627 2169, sindbad1@bezeqint.net, www.Sindbad-Travel.com • Swift Travel, Tel: 628 0704, Fax: 627 2783, swifttours@hotmail.com • Terra Sancta Tourist Co, Tel: 628 4733, Fax: 626 4472 • Tower Tours & Travel Ltd., Tel: 628 2365, Fax: 628 2366, towertours@alqudsnet.com, www.tower-tours.com • Tony Tours Ltd., Tel: 244 2050, Fax: 244 2052, ihab64@012.net.il • Traveller Experience Tours, Telefax: 585 8440, Mob. 0548 050 383, info@travellerexperience.com, www.travellerexperience.com • United Travel Ltd., Tel: 583 3614, Fax: 583 6190, unidas@bezeqint.net, www.unitedtravelltd.com • Universal Tourist Agency, Tel: 628 4383, Fax: 626 4448, uta-j@zahav.net.il, www.universal-jer.com • William Tours & Travel Agency, Tel: 623 1617, Fax: 624 1126, wiltours_n@hotmail.com • Yanis Tours & Travel, Telefax: 627 5862, hai_mou@yahoo.com • Zatarah Tourist & Travel Agency, Tel: 627 2725, Fax: 628 9873, info@zaatarahtravel.com

Bethlehem (02) ACA Travel & Tourism, Tel: 274 1115, Fax: 275 2263, tourism@aca.ps, www.aca.ps • Angels Tours and Travel, Tel: 277 5813, Fax: 277 5814, angels@p-ol.com, www.angelstours.com.ps • Arab Agency Travel & Tourism, Tel: 274 1872, Fax: 274 2431, tourism@aca-palestine.com, www.aca-palestine.com • Bethlehem Star Travel, Telefax: 277 0441, info@bst.ps, www.bst.ps • Crown Tours & Travel Co. Ltd., Tel: 274 0911, Fax: 274 0910, info@crown-tours.com, www.crown-tours.com • East Wind Tours & Travel, Tel: 277 3316, Fax: 277 3315, info@eastwindtourz.com, www.eastwindtourz.com • Four Seasons Co. Tourism & Travel, Tel: 277 4401, Fax: 277 4402, fseasons@p-ol.com • Gloria Tours & Travel, Tel: 274 0835, Fax: 274 3021, gloria@p-ol.com • Golden Gate Tours & Travel, Tel: 276 6044, Fax: 276 6045, ggtours@palnet.com • Kukali Travel & Tours, Tel: 277 3047, Fax: 277 2034, kukali@p-ol.com • Laila Tours & Travel, Tel: 277 7997, Fax: 277 7996, laila@lailatours.com, www.Lailatours.com • Lama Tours International, Tel: 274 3717, Fax: 274 3747, litco@p-ol.com • Madian Tours & Travel Co.Ltd, Tel: 275 1929, info@madian-tours.com • Millennium Transportation, TeleFax: 676 7727, 050-242 270 • Mousallam Int’l Tours, Tel: 277 0054, Fax: 277 0054, Mitours@palnet.com • Nativity Tours and Travel, Tel: 276 1124, TeleFax: 276 1125, info@thenativitytours.com, www.thenativitytours.com • Sansur Travel Agency, Tel: 274 4473, Telefax: 274 4459 • Sky Lark Tours and Travel, Tel: 274 2886, Fax: 276 4962, skylark@palnet.com • Terra Santa Tourist Co., Tel: 277 0249 Fax:

277 0250 • Voice of Faith Tours, Tel: 275 70 50 Fax: 275 70 51, nabil@gmtravel.co.il, www.gmtravel.co.il • West Bank Tours & Travel, Tel: 277 8850, Fax: 277 8851, info@westbanktravel.com, www.westbanktravel.com

Beit Jala (02) Guiding Star Ltd., Tel: 276 5970, Fax: 276 5971, info@guidingstar2.com

Beit Sahour (02) Alternative Tourism Group, Tel: 277 2151, Fax: 277 2211, info@atg.ps, www.atg.ps • Brothers Travel & Tours, Tel: 277 5188, Fax: 277 5189, holyland@brostours.com, www.brostours.com • Grace Tours, Tel: 275 7363, Fax: 277 2420, elias@grace-tours.com • Magi Tours, Telefax: 277 5798, magitours@spidernet.ps

Hebron (02) AL-Afaq for Travel & Umrah, Telefax: 221 1332, alafaqtravel@yahoo.com • AlArrab Tours Tel: 221 1917, info@alarrabtours.com • Al-Buhaira Tours and Travel co., Telefax: 225 2095, www.AL-BUHAIRA.com, INFO@ALBUAIRA.com • Alkiram Tourism, Tel: 225 6501/2, Fax: 225 6504, alkiram@hebronet.com • Al Raed Travel Agency, Telefax: 229 3030, Mob: 0599 889 477, raedbader@msn.com • Al-Salam Travel and Tours Co., Tel: 221 5574, Fax: 223 3747 • Sabeen Travel Tourism, Telefax: 229 4775, sabeenco@yahoo.com

Ramallah (02) Al-Asmar Travel Agency, Telefax: 295 4140, 296 5775, asmar@p-ol.com • All Middle East Pilgrimage and Tourism Coordination Office, Tel: 289 8123, Fax: 289 9174, ameptco@gmail.com, www.ameptco.com • Amani Tours, Telefax: 298 7013, amanitr@p-ol.com • Anwar Travel Agency, Tel: 295 6388, 295 1706, alaa@anwartravel.ps • Apollo Travel & Tourism Agency, Mob: 0568 038 536, 0568 038 534, Tel: 241 2510, Fax: 251 2567, apollotravel1@gmail.com • Arab Office for Travel & Tourism, Tel: 295 6640, Fax: 295 1331 • Arseema for Travel & Tourism, Tel: 297 5571, Fax: 297 5572, info@arseema.ps • Atlas Tours & Travel, Tel: 295 2180, Fax: 298 6395, www.atlasavia.com • Damas Holidays for Travel and Tourism, Tel: 241 2285, Fax: 241 2281, info@damasholidays.ps, www.damasholidays.ps • Darwish Travel Agency, Tel: 295 6221, Fax: 295 7940 • Golden Globe Tours, Tel: 296 5111, Fax: 296 5110, gg-tours@palnet.com • Issis & Co., Tel: 295 6250, Fax: 295 4305 • Jordan River Tourist & Travel Agency, Tel: 298 0523, Fax: 298 0524 • Kashou’ Travel Agency, Tel: 295 5229, Fax: 295 3107, kashoutravel@hotmail.com • Mrebe Tours & Travel, Tel: 295 4671, Fax: 295 4672, info@mrebetours.ps • The Pioneer Links Travel & Tourism Bureau, Tel: 240 7859, Fax: 240 7860, pioneer@pioneer-links.com • Travel House For Travel & Tourism, Tel: 295 7225, Fax: 296 2634, www.travelhouse.ps • Rahhal Tours & Travel, Tel: 242 3256, Fax: 242 9962, info@rahhaltours.ps, www.rahhalyours.ps • Raha Tours and Travel, Tel: 296 1780, Fax: 296 1782, www.rahatt.com, www.rahatravel.com • Reem Travel Agency, Tel: 295 3871, Fax: 295 3871 • Royal Tours, Tel: 296 6350/1, Fax: 296 6635 • Sabeen Travel Tourism, Telefax: 240 5931, sabeenco@yahoo.com • Salah Tours, Tel: 295 9931, Fax: 298 7206 • Shbat & Abdul Nur, Tel: 295 6267, Fax: 295 7246

Jenin (04) Asia Travel Tourism, Telefax: 243 5157, www.asia-tourism.net • Al Sadeq Travel & Tourism, Tel: 243 8055, Fax: 243 8057, email: amr_jarrar@yahoo.com • Riviera Tours And Travel, Tel: 250 4140, Fax: 250 4142, rivieratours@ hotmail.com, rivierapal@yahoo.com

Nablus (09) Almadena Tours, Tel: 239 3333, Telefax: 239 3366, travel@almadena.ps, www.almadena.ps • Cypress Tours, Telfax: 238 1797, info@cypress-tours.com, www.cypress-tours.com • Dream Travel & Tourism, Tel: 233 5056, Fax: 237 2069 • Firas Tours, Tel: 234 4565, Fax: 234 7781 • Hittin Travel & Tours, Tel: 238 2298, Fax: 233 8092, www. hittin-travel.com • Top Tour, Tel: 238 9159, Fax: 238 1425, toptourandtravel@yahoo.com • Yaish International Tours, Telefax: 238 1410, 238 1437, yaishtrl@palnet.com • Zorba’s Travel Show, Tel: 234 4959, Mob: 0569 282 726

Tulkarem (09) Faj Tours, Tel: 2672 486, Fax: 2686 070, fajtours@hotmail.com

Gaza Strip (08) Al-Muntazah Travel Agency, Tel: 282 7919 Fax: 282 4923 • Halabi Tours and Travel Co., Tel: 282 3704, Fax: 286 6075, halabitours@email.com, www.halabitours.ps • Maxim Tours, Tel: 282 4415, Fax: 286 7596 • National Tourist Office, Tel: 286 0616, Fax: 286 0682, shurafa@mtcgaza.com • Time Travel Ltd., Tel: 283 6775, Fax: 283 6855, timetravel@marna.com

Air France and KLM, Tel: 02-628 2535/6 (Jerusa lem), Tel: 08-286 0616 (Gaza) • Air Sinai – Varig, Tel: 02-627 2725 (Jerusalem), Tel: 08-282 1530 (Gaza) • Alitalia (GSA), Tel: 627 1731, Fax: 627 1719, azgsa@aeolus-travel.com • Austrian Airlines Tel: 09-238 2065, Fax: 09-237 5598 (Nablus) • Apollo Travel & Tourism, Tel: 02-241 2510, Fax: 02-241 2567 (Ramallah), Mob: 0568 038 536 • British Airways PLC, Tel: 02-628 8654, Telefax: 02- 628 3602, (Jerusalem) • Cyprus Airways, Tel: 02-240 4894 (Al-Bireh) • Delta Airlines, Tel: 02-296 7250, Telefax: 02-298 6395 (Ramallah) • Egypt Air, Tel: 02-298 6950/49 (Ramallah), Tel: 08-282 1530 (Gaza) • Emirates Airlines, Tel: 02-296 1780 (Ramallah) • Etihad Air Ways, Tel: 02-295 3907 / 02-295 3912 / 02-295 3913, Fax: 02-295 3914, info@etihad.ps (Ramallah), Tel: 02-295 3912/3 (Ramallah) • Iberia, Tel: 02-628 3235/7238 (Jerusalem) • Lufthansa, Tel: 09-238 2065, Fax: 09-237 5598 (Nablus) • Malev-Hungarian Airlines, Tel: 02-295 2180 (Ramallah) • Middle East Car Rental, Tel: 02-295 2602, Fax: 295 2603 • PAL AVIATION, Tel. 02-296 7250 Telefax: 02-298 6395 (Ramallah) • Palestine Airlines, Tel: 08-282 2800 (Gaza), Tel: 08-282 9526/7 (Gaza) • Qatar

8584

Airways, Tel: 02-240 4895 (Al-Bireh), Tel: 08-284 2303 (Gaza) • Royal Jordanian Airways, Tel: 02-240 5060 (Ramallah), Tel: 08-282 5403/13 (Gaza) • SN Brussels Airlines, Tel: 02-295 2180 (Ramallah) • SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Tel: 02-628 3235/7238 (Jerusalem) • South African Airways, Tel: 02-628 6257 (Jerusalem) • Swiss International Airlines, Tel: 02-295 2180 (Ramallah) • Tunis Air, Tel: 02-298 7013 (Ramallah), Tel: 08-286 0616 (Gaza) • Turkish Airlines, Tel: 02-277 0130 (Bethlehem) Airport Information Gaza International Airport, Tel: 08-213 4289 • Ben Gurion Airport, Tel: 03-972 3344

Consulates East Jerusalem (02) Apostolic Delegation, Tel: 628 2298, Fax: 628 1880 • Belgium, Tel: 582 8263, Fax: 581 4063, jerusalem@diplobel.org • European Community - Delegation to the OPT, Tel: 541 5888, Fax: 541 5848 • France, Tel: 591 4000, Fax: 582 0032 • Great Britain, Tel: 541 4100, Fax: 532 2368, britain.jerusalem@fco.gov.uk, www.britishconsulate.org • Greece, Tel: 582 8316, Fax: 532 5392 • Italy, Tel: 561 8966, Fax: 561 9190 • Spain, Tel: 582 8006, Fax: 582 8065 • Swedish Consulate General, Tel: 646 5860, Fax: 646 5861 • Turkey, Tel: 591 0555-7, Fax: 582 0214, turkcons.jerusalem@mfa.gov.tr, www.kudus.bk.mfa.gov.tr • United States of America, Tel: 622 7230, Fax: 625 9270

Representative Offices to the PNA Ramallah & Al-Bireh (02) Argentina Representative Office to the PA, Tel: 241 2848/9, Fax: 241 2850, repal@mrecic.gov.ar • Australia, Tel: 242 5301, Fax: 240 8290, austrep@palnet.com, ausaid@palnet.com • Austria, Tel: 240 1477, Fax: 240 0479 • Brazil, Tel: 241 3753, Fax: 241 3756, admin-office@rep-brazil.org • Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Tel: 240 58 60/1, Fax: 2405862, representacionenpalestina@yahoo.com, representacionenpalestina@hotmail.com • Canada, Tel: 297 8430, Fax: 297 8446, rmlah@international.gc.ca • Chile, Tel: 296 0850, Fax: 298 4768, chileram@palnet.com • Cyprus, Tel: 241 3206, Fax: 241 3208 • Czech Republic, Tel: 296 5595, Fax: 296 5596 • Denmark, Tel: 242 2330, Fax: 240 0331 • Egypt, Tel: 297 7774, Fax: 297 7772 • Finland, Tel: 240 0340, Fax: 240 0343 • Germany, Tel: 298 4788, Fax: 298 4786, gerrprof@palnet.com • Hungary, Tel: 240 7676, Fax: 240 7678, humisram@palnet.com • India, Tel: 290 3033, Fax: 290 3035, roi_ramallah@palnet.com • Ireland, Tel: 240 6811/2/3, Fax: 240 6816, irishrep@palnet.com • Japan, Tel: 241 3120, Fax: 241 3123 • Jordan, Tel: 297 4625, Fax: 297 4624 • Lithuania, Tel: 241 5290, office.ramallah@mfa.lt • Mexico, Tel: 297 5592, Fax: 297 5594, ofimex-ramala@palnet.com • Norway, Tel: 235 8600, Fax: 235 8699, repram@mfa.no • Poland, Tel: 297 1318, Fax: 297 1319 • Portugal, Tel: 240 7291/3, Fax: 240 7294 • Representative Office of Republic of Slovenia in Palestine, Tel. 02-2413055, Fax. 02-2413054, slovenia.ramallah@gmail.com • Republic of Korea, Tel: 240 2846/7, Fax: 240 2848 • Russian Federation, Tel: 240 0970, Fax: 240 0971 • South Africa, Tel: 298 7355, Fax: 298 7356, sarep@sarep.org, www.sarep.org • Sri Lanka, Telefax: 290 4271 • Switzerland, Tel: 240 8360, vertretung@rah.rep.admin.ch • The Netherlands, Tel: 240 6639, Fax: 240 9638 • The People’s Republic of China, Tel: 295 1222, Fax: 295 1221, chinaoffice@palnet.com

Gaza Strip (08) Egypt, Tel: 282 4290, Fax: 282 0718 • Germany, Tel: 282 5584, Fax: 284 4855 • Jordan, Tel: 282 5134, Fax: 282 5124 • Morocco, Tel: 282 4264, Fax: 282 4104 • Norway, Tel: 282 4615, Fax: 282 1902 • Qatar, Tel: 282 5922, Fax: 282 5932 • South Africa, Tel: 284 1313, Fax: 284 1333 • Tunisia, Tel: 282 5018, Fax: 282 5028United Nations and International Organisations FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Jerusalem (02), Tel: 533 9400, 532 2757, Fax: 540 0027, fao-gz@fao.org, www.fao.org • IBRD - International Bank for Reconstruction and De vel opment (World Bank), West Bank (02), Tel: 236 6500, Fax: 236 6543, Gaza (08) Tel: 282 4746 Fax: 282 4296, firstletterofsurname.familyname@worldbank.org • IMF, - International Monetary Fund, www.imf.org, Gaza (08), Tel: 282 5913; Fax: 282 5923, West Bank (02), Tel: 236 6530; Fax: 236 6543 • ILO - International Labor Organization, Jerusalem (02), Tel: 626 0212, 628 0933, Fax: 627 6746, Khaled.doudine@undp.org, Ramallah (02), Tel: 290 0022, Fax: 290 0023, Nablus (09), Tel: 237 5692 - 233 8371, Fax: 233 8370 • OHCHR - Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Gaza (08), Tel: 282 7021, Fax: 282 7321, ohchr@undp.org, West Bank Office, Telefax: 02-296 5534 • UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, Ramallah (02), Tel: 295 9740, Fax: 295 9741, unesco@palnet.com • UNFPA - United Nations Population Fund, Jerusalem (02), Tel: 581 7292, Fax: 581 7382, unfpa.ps@undp.org, www.unfpa.ps • UNICEF - United Nations Children’s Fund, Jerusalem (02), Tel: 584 0400, Fax: 583 0806, Gaza (08), Tel: 286 2400, Fax: 286 2800, Jerusalem@unicef.org • UNIFEM - United Nations Development Fund for Women, Telefax: 628 0450, Tel: 628 0661 • UN OCHA - United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Tel: 582 9962/02 - 582 5853, Fax: 582 5841, ochaopt@un.org, www.ochaopt.org • UNRWA - United Nations Relief and Works Agency, Gaza (08), Tel: 677 7333, Fax: 677 7555, unrwapio@unrwa.org, West Bank (02), Tel: 589 0401, Fax: 532 2714, firstletterofsurname.familyname@unrwa.org • UNSCO - Office of the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tel: 08-284 3555/02-568 7276, Fax: 08-282 0966/02-568 7288, UNSCO-Media@un.org, www.unsco.org • UNTSO - United Nations Truce Supervision Organization, Jerusalem (02), Tel: 568 7222 - 568 7444, Fax: 568 7400, DPKO-UNTSO-admin@un.org • WFP - World Food Programmeme, Gaza (08), Tel: 282 7463, Fax: 282 7921, Jerusalem (02), Tel: 540 1340, Fax: 540 1227, pablo.recalde@wfp.org • WHO - World Health Organization, Jerusalem (02), Tel: 540 0595, Fax: 581 0193, info@who-health.org, Gaza (08), Tel: 282 2033, Fax: 284 5409, who@palnet.com • World Bank, Tel: 236 6500, Fax: 236 6543

United Nations Development Programmeme (UNDP), Programmeme of Assistance to the Palestinian People (PAPP)4 Al-Ya’qubi Street, Jerusalem, Tel: 02 6268200, Fax: 02 6268222, E-mail: registry.papp@undp.org / URL: http://www.papp.undp.org

East Jerusalem (02) Hospitals Augusta Victoria, Tel: 627 9911 • Dajani Maternity, Tel: 583 3906 • Hadassah (Ein Kerem), Tel: 677 7111 • Hadassah (Mt. Scopus), Tel: 584 4111 • Maqassed, Tel: 627 0222 • Red Crescent Maternity, Tel: 628 6694 • St. John’s Opthalmic, Tel: 582 8325 • St. Joseph, Tel: 591 1911 • Clinics and Centers Arab Health Center, Tel: 628 8726 • CHS Clinics, Tel: 628 0602/0499 • Ibn Sina Medical Center, Tel: 540 0083/9, 532 2536 • Jerusalem First Aid Clinic, Tel: 626 4055 • Medical Relief Womens, Health Clinic, Tel: 583 3510 • Palestinian Counseling Center, Tel: 656 2272, 656 2627 • Peace Medical Center, Tel: 532 7111, 532 4259 • Red Crescent Society, Tel: 582 8845 • Spafford Children’s Clinic, Tel: 628 4875 • The Austrian Arab Commu nity Clinic (AACC), Tel: 627 3246 • The Jerusalem Princess Basma Center for Disabled Children, Tel: 628 3058

Bethlehem (02) Hospitals Al-Dibis Maternity, Tel: 274 4242 • Al-Hussein Government, Tel: 274 1161 • Bethlehem Arab Society for Rehabilitation, Tel: 274 4049-51, Fax: 274 4053 • Caritas Baby, Tel: 275 8500, Fax: 275 8501 • Mental Health, Tel: 274 1155 • Shepherd’s Field Hospital, Tel: 277 5092 • St. Mary’s Maternity, Tel: 274 2443 • The Holy Family, Tel: 274 1151, Fax: 274 1154 • Clinics and Centers Beit Sahour Medical Center, Tel: 277 4443 • Bethlehem Dental Center, Tel: 274 3303

Hebron (02) Hos pi tals Amira Alia, Tel: 222 8126 • Al-Ahli, Tel: 222 0212 • Al-Meezan, Tel: 225 7400/1 • Mohammed Ali, Tel: 225 3883/4 • Shaheera, Tel: 222 6982 • St. John’s Opthalmic, Tel: 223 6047 • The Red Crescent, Tel: 222 8333 • Yattah Governmental Hospital, Tel: 227 1017, 227 1019 • Clinics and Centers Red Crescent Society, Tel: 222 7450 • UPMRC, Tel: 222 6663

Jericho (02) Hospitals Jericho Government, Tel: 232 1967/8/9 • Clinics and Centers UPMRC, Tel: 232 2148

Nablus (09) Hospitals Al-Aqsa Hospital and Medical Center, Tel: 294 7666 • Al-Ittihad, Tel: 237 1491 • Al-Watani, Tel: 238 0039 • Al-Zakat Hospital (TolKarem), Tel: 268 0680 • Aqraba Maternity Home, Tel: 259 8550 • Rafidia, Tel: 239 0390 • Salfit Emergency Governmental Hospital, Tel: 251 5111 • Specialized Arab Hospital, Tel: 239 0390 • St. Luke’s, Tel: 238 3818 • UNRWA Qalqilia Hospital (Qalqiliya), Tel: 294 0008 • Clinics and Centers Al-Amal Center, Tel: 238 3778 • Arab Medical Center, Tel: 237 1515 • Hagar (Handicapped Equipment Center), Tel: 239 8687 • Red Crescent Society, Tel: 238 2153 • UPMRC, Tel: 283 7178

Ramallah and Al-Bireh (02) Hospitals Arabcare Hospital, Tel: 298 6420 • AL-Karmel Maternity Home, Tel: 247 1026 • Al-Mustaqbal Hospital, Tel: 240 4562 • AL-Nather Maternity Hospital, Tel: 295 5295 • Ash-Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Tel: 298 8088 • Birziet Maternity Home, Tel: 281 0616 • Care Specialized Dental Center, Tel: 297 5090 • Khaled Surgical Hospital, Tel: 295 5640 • Ramallah Government Hospitals, Tel: 298 2216/7 • Red Crescent Hospital, Tel: 240 6260 • Clinics and Centers Arab Medical Center, Tel: 295 4334 • Arabcare Medical Center, Tel: 298 6420 • Emergency & Trauma Center, Tel: 298 8088 • Harb Heart Center, Tel: 296 0336 • Modern Dental Center, Tel: 298 0630 • National Center for Blood Diseases “Hippocrates” Thalessemia and Hemophilia Center, Tel: 296 5082, Fax: 296 5081 • Patients’ Friends Society K. Abu Raya Re ha bili tation Centre, Tel: 295 7060/1 • Palestinian Hemophilia Association-PHA, Telefax: 297 5588 • Peace Medical Center, Tel: 295 9276 • Red Crescent Society, Tel: 240 6260 • UPMRC, Tel: 298 4423, 296 0686

Gaza Strip (08) Hospitals Al-Ahli Al-Arabi, Tel: 286 3014 • Dar Al-Salam, Tel: 285 4240 • Nasser, Tel: 205 1244 • Shifa, Tel: 286 2765 • Clinics and Centers Arab Medical Center, Tel: 286 2163 • Beit Hanoun Clinic, Tel: 285 8065 • Dar Al-Shifa, Tel: 286 5520 • Hagar (Handicapped Equipment Center), Tel: 284 2636 • St. John’s Opthalmic, Tel: 284 8445 • UPMRC, Tel: 282 7837

East Jerusalem (02) Quds Bank (Al-Ezzarieh), Tel: 279 8803 • Arab Bank (Al-Ezzarieh), Tel: 279 6671, Fax: 279 6677 • Arab Bank (Al-Ram), Tel: 234 8710, Fax: 234 8717 • Bank of Palestine (Abu Dees), Tel: 1700 150 150 • Center for Development Consultancy (CDC), Tel: 583 3183, Fax: 583 3185 • Commer cial Bank of Palestine, Tel: 279 9886, Fax: 279 9258

Bethlehem (02) Arab Bank, Tel: 277 0080, Fax: 277 0088 • Arab Land Bank, Tel: 274 0861 • Cairo-Amman Bank, Tel: 274 4971, Fax: 274 4974 • Jordan Ahli Bank, Tel: 277 0351 • Jordan National Bank,

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Tel: 277 0351, Fax: 277 0354 • Bank of Palestine, Tel: 1700 150 150 • Palestine Investment Bank, Tel: 277 0888, Fax: 277 0889

Hebron (02) Quds Bank, Tel: 221 1357 • Al-Ahli Bank, Tel: 222 4801/2/3/4 • Arab Bank, Tel: 222 6410, Fax: 222 6418 • Bank of Palestine, Tel: 1700 150 150 • Cairo-Amman Bank, (Wadi Al-Tuffah), Tel: 222 5353/4/5 • Cairo-Amman Bank, (Al-Balad), Tel: 222 9803/4 • Cairo-Amman Bank, (The Islamic Branch), Tel: 222 7877 • Islamic Arab Bank, Tel: 2254156/7 • Islamic Bank, Tel: 222 6768 • Jordan Bank, Tel: 222 4351/2/3/4 • Palestine Investment Bank, Tel: 225 2701/2/3/4 • The Housing Bank, Tel: 225 0055

Ramallah (02) Quds Bank (Al-Masyoon), Tel: 297 0014, (El-Bireh), Tel: 298 3391 • National Bank, (Hebron), Tel: 221 6222, Fax: 221 6231, (Ramallah: HQ), Tel: 294 6090, Fax: 294 6114, (Al Masyoun Branch), Tel: 297 7731, Fax: 297 7730, (Al Irsal Branch), Tel: 297 8700, Fax: 297 8701, (Nablus), Tel: 238 0802, Fax: 238 0801 • Arab Bank, (Al-Balad) Tel: 298 6480, Fax: 298 6488, (Al-Bireh), Tel: 295 9581, Fax: 295 9588, (Al-Manara) Tel: 295 4821, Fax: 295 4824, (Masyoun Branch), Tel: 297 8100 • Arab Land Bank, Tel: 295 8421 • Bank of Palestine, 1700 150 150, (Al-Irsal) Tel: 296 6860, Fax: 296 6864 • Arab Palestinian Investment Bank, Tel: 298 7126, Fax: 298 7125 • Beit Al-Mal Holdings, Tel: 298 6916, Fax: 298 6916 • Jordan Ahli Bank, Tel: 298 6313, Fax: 298 6311• Cairo-Amman Bank, Tel: 298 3500, Fax: 295 5437 • The Center for Private Enterprise Development, Tel: 298 6786, Fax: 298 6787 • Commercial Bank of Palestine, Tel: 295 4141, Fax: 295 4145 • Cooperative Development Unit, Tel: 290 0029, Fax: 290 0029 • Deutsche Ausgleichsbank (DTA), Tel: 298 4462, Fax: 295 2610 • The Housing Bank, Tel: 298 6270, Fax: 298 6276 • International Islamic Arab Bank, Tel: 240 7060, Fax: 240 7065 • Jordan Bank, Tel: 295 8686, Fax: 2958684 • Jordan-Gulf Bank, Tel: 298 7680, Fax: 298 7682 • Jordan-Kuwait Bank, Tel: 240 6725, Fax: 240 6728 • Jordan National Bank, Tel: 295 9343, Fax: 295 9341 • Palestine International Bank (PIB), Tel: 298 3300, Fax: 298 3333 • Palestine Investment Bank, Tel: 298 7880, Fax: 298 7881 • Palestine Islamic Bank, Tel: 295 0247, Fax: 295 7146 • Union Bank, Tel: 298 6412, Fax: 295 6416

Gaza Strip (08) Quds Bank (Al-Remal), Tel: 284 4333 • Arab Bank, Tel: 08-286 6288, Fax: 282 0704, (Al-Rimal), Tel: 282 4729, Fax: 282 4719, (Khan Younis) Tel: 205 4775, Fax: 205 4745, (Karny), Tel: 280 0020, Fax: 280 0028 • Arab Land Bank, Tel: 282 2046, Fax: 282 1099 • Bank of Palestine, 1700 150 150 • Beit Al-Mal Holdings, Tel: 282 0722, Fax: 282 5786 • Cairo-Amman Bank, Tel: 282 4950, Fax: 282 4830 • Commercial Bank of Palestine, Tel: 282 5806, Fax: 282 5816 • The Housing Bank, Tel: 282 6322, Fax: 286 1143 • Jordan Bank, Tel: 282 0707, Fax: 282 4341 • Palestine Development Fund, Tel: 282 4286, Fax: 282 4286 • Palestine International Bank (PIB), Tel: 284 4333, Fax: 284 4303 • Palestine Investment Bank, Tel: 282 2105, Fax: 282 2107

Nablus (09) Quds Bank, Tel: 235 9741, (Nablus Aljded), Tel: 239 7782 • Arab Bank, Tel: 238 2340, Fax: 238 2351, (Askar), Tel: 231 1694, Fax: 234 2076 • Arab Land Bank, Tel: 238 3651, Fax: 238 3650 • Bank of Palestine, 1700 150 150, (Al-Misbah), Tel: 231 1460, Fax: 231 1922 • Cairo-Amman Bank, Tel: 238 1301, Fax: 238 1590 • Commercial Bank of Palestine, Tel: 238 5160, Fax: 238 5169 • The Housing Bank, Tel: 238 6060, Fax: 238 6066 • Jordan Ahli Bank, Tel: 238 2280 • Jordan Bank, Tel: 238 1120, Fax: 238 1126 • Jordan-Gulf Bank, Tel: 238 2191, Fax: 238 1953 • Jordan-Kuwait Bank, Tel: 237 7223, Fax: 237 7181 • Jordan-National Bank, Tel: 238 2280, Fax: 238 2283 • Palestine Investment Bank, Tel: 238 5051, Fax: 238 5057 • Palestine International Bank, Tel: 239 7780, Fax: 239 7788

City Fire Ambulance PoliceJerusalem* 02-628 2222 101 100CHS (Old City Jerusalem) 101 / 0505 319 120Bethlehem 02-274 1123 101 / 02-274 4222 100Gaza 08-286 3633 101 / 08-2863633 100Hebron 102 / 22 28121-2-3 101 100Jericho 02-232 2658 101 / 02-232 1170 100Jenin 04-250 1225 101 / 04-250 2601 100Nablus 09-238 3444 101 / 09-238 0399 100Ramallah 02-295 6102 101 / 02-240 0666 100Child Helpline Palestine (121) free lineTulkarem 09-267 2106 101 / 09-267 2140 100Qalqilia 09-294 0440 101 / 09-294 0440 100

Map Source: PalMap - GSE© Copyright to GSE and PalMapMap source, designer and publisher:GSE - Good Shepherd Engineering & ComputingP.O.Box 524, 8 Jamal Abdel Nasser St.,Bethlehem, West Bank, PalestineTel: +970 2 274 4728 / Fax: +970 2 275 1204 (Also +972)map@palmap.org / www.gsecc.com / www.palmap.org

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Warmly,Sani P. Meo

Publisher

We* Refuse

As 2015 dawns, Palestinian drivers still refuse to remain in line as they wait to be checked at a checkpoint. Whether we’re rebellious and unruly by nature or have become so because of circumstances, or whether it’s an unconscious refusal of the status quo, we push and shove, go against traffic, curse anyone who dares bypass us, and simply do whatever it takes to get out first. It’s a jungle out there and the mentality of “survival of the fittest” reigns.

I am convinced now that walking through traffic in the middle of the street is a Palestinian trait. We simply refuse to walk on the pavements. For crying out loud, a few days ago I saw a beggar in a wheelchair who was sitting smack in the middle of Ramallah’s Manara Square waving a paper and asking people for help!

We refuse to drive another 100 metres to make a legal U-turn and insist on holding up traffic to make a U-turn at a “No U-Turn” traffic light, and by doing so risk our own lives and those of others. We refuse to wait the last few seconds for the light to turn green before barging ahead through the intersection. We refuse to keep the trash in the car and insist on throwing it from the window. And we surely refuse to abide by the law that forbids talking on the phone and texting while driving. We certainly deserve the term “refusniks!”

On the other hand, our freedom fighters rightfully refuse ill treatment and inhumane conditions in Israeli prisons. Hunger strikes have been the most common response, and we think of Samer Issawi, who set a record with his 8-month hunger strike before his wardens gave in and eventually released him. We refuse to stop demonstrating every Friday in Bil’in, Ni’lin, and Nabi Saleh. We refuse the war on Gaza, we refuse the regular incursions on Al-Aqsa Mosque; we refuse land confiscations, home demolitions, the apartheid Wall, the squatters’ attacks on our villages, the unification and Judaisation of Jerusalem, ID confiscations, children’s detentions, uprooting of the Bedouins, partition of the Ibrahimi Mosque and the Old City of Hebron. We refuse to assimilate. Hell, we refuse injustice.

“All I want for Christmas is Justice!” proclaims a big banner that hangs next to the Christmas tree in Bethlehem. Sounds like a request if you ask me, but unfortunately, the world seems to refuse to grant it. So we have no choice but to refuse its refusal and continue to refuse injustice.

Wishing you all a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year.

* “We,” in this context, refers to a few of us Palestinians. I’m using “we” to emphasise the point.