O.L. in Palestine

[HaTikva]

I hope this topic is allowed here, as I don't want to start a political discussion or so, I am asking this purely out of interest in the Middle East as a whole and without wanting to start any debate on the local politics.

Have Orphaned Land ever performed in Gaza or the West Bank? I think their message of peaceful co-existance would be received very well by the local rock fans, and it is quite well known that especially Ramallah is a city with a vibrant cultural life and many artistic events. So I was wondering if O.L. ever played a concert there? I guess it would be less hard to get such a gig organised than organising one in for example Lebanon or the UAE (which is a shame because the band has nothing but good intentions and have a following in these countries)

PS: I would love to visit Bethlehem and Ramallah someday, they look like very interesting and (from the pictures I saw) nice cities. I hope by the time I get to Israel that travel will be possible.

 

[Ghâshûl]

I have been to Bethlehem, and it's a wonderful place. But as far as I understood, only tourists and palestinians are allowed to enter the west bank, or Israeli with special permits, so I doubt it'd be easy to get to play a concert there.

 

[Kenneth R.]

hope so in the future

 

[BC-A]

It is impossible to enter Gaza even for tourists and journalists. You need an authorization from the Israeli government.
Israelis can go to certain "zones" (A B C as they call them, depending who is fully or not controlling it -Israelis/Palestinians-) of the westbank, otherwise it is not recommended (if not forbidden)

Taken from the US gov travelling advises

In June 2009, the Israeli government began selectively limiting certain travelers to either the occupied territories of the West Bank and Gaza, or to Israel and Jerusalem. To date, the Israeli government has not provided information about which categories of travelers can expect to be subject to these restrictions. Nonetheless, Israeli border officials at Ben Gurion Airport began requiring certain travelers to sign a form that states s/he is not allowed to enter territories controlled by the Palestinian Authority unless s/he obtains advance authorization from the Israeli "Territory Actions Coordinator," and that violating this restriction may result in the traveler being deported from Israel and barred from entry for up to 10 years. At the Allenby Bridge crossing, as well as at Ben Gurion Airport, Israeli border officials also began using a new entry stamp for certain travelers that states "Palestinian Authority Only." Since travelers entering via the Allenby crossing must transit Israeli checkpoints and Israeli-controlled territory to reach Jerusalem or Gaza, this restriction effectively limits travelers who receive this stamp at Allenby to destinations in the West Bank only. This stamp has been known to be used even with travelers who have no Palestinian or other Arab ancestry, and who would not seem to have any claim to a Palestinian Authority ID.

 

[Postmodernist]

Hm, can anyone remind me what Palestinian rock band said Orphaned Land is a good role model?

 

[Morticia NL.]

The band is not their government. But it is indeed sad to read this Kafka situations they are creating in Israel and it is a good thing people are writing about it (here as well) to create awareness.

 

[Folklore]

If Kobi is telling me he's going into gaza, ill smake his on his nose.
I dont want any of them or any more Israeli to be hostages.

 

[HaTikva]

If Kobi is entering Gaza, bringing a message of peace and respect for each other, I'm sure most Gazan people would welcome them with open arms. The Israelis they see now are sectarian politicians. If someone such as Kobi would come to Gaza with the message Orphaned Land is bringing, I'm sure this could break barriers. I very much doubt anyone in Gaza would be angry with an Israeli visiting them with a message of hope for a better future.

 

[FiveString]

If Kobi is entering Gaza, bringing a message of peace and respect for each other, I'm sure most Gazan people would welcome them with open arms. The Israelis they see now are sectarian politicians. If someone such as Kobi would come to Gaza with the message Orphaned Land is bringing, I'm sure this could break barriers. I very much doubt anyone in Gaza would be angry with an Israeli visiting them with a message of hope for a better future.

I lived in Israel/Palestine (yes, both) for nearly 14 years w-a-y back. I would stop my endless job-search, walk to the East Coast and proceed to (attempt to...) walk on the Atlantic to attend an OL gig in Palestine. Talk about rock changing the world, right?

However, Hamas governs Gaza, along with an interpretation of Islam that sits well with very few Muslims (fortunately). It doesn't even allow Palestinian bands to hold rock concerts and is known to be "a bit" heavy-handed with those who break "the rules." This is not about the peaceful, war-loathing majority of citizens in that territory. They certainly would welcome OL.

The West Bank is a whole different matter. The leadership there is secular. There, Kafka'esque rules alone (Morticia said it all) prevent an OL appearance.

Shame on the politicians, Israeli and Palestinian...you know what--shame on all politicians everwhere. I haven't yet met one I respected. So I guess I'm an Anarchist, oy vey.

 

[NickNack]

I guess the whole permit thing is to try to prevent incidents like what happened at Mikes Place in 2003, the terrorists were British, they entered over the Allenby Crossing and travelled throughout the PA controlled areas in Gaza Judea and Samaria and made contact with facilitators (I remember becasue one of them was from the city where I was born, it was all over local news). There are a lot of foreigners who travel through to the Palestinian areas on Israeli visas and end up involved in violence against civillians. Problem is the security forces don't have the resources to differentiate between those with malicious intentions and those with genuine reasons to travel within those areas. Christian tourists are still able to visit PA controlled Christian sites and universities and archeologists on both sides are still collaborating, plus I don't think international artists performing in Ramallah are subject to the same restrictions as their motives can been verified without a doubt. A permit would be based on a threat assesment of the situation at the time. Don't take my word though, I'm just prognosticating from what security experts have told me over the years...

I guess if enough people wanted it, then it could happen, all you need to do is spread the word.