From Bethlehem to Hebron: My journey through truth that defies apartheid accusation - opinion - Paushali Lass

 

by Paushali Lass

The open discrimination in the Holy Land is one that the world refuses to acknowledge. It denies Jews access to their holiest places and demonizes the one Jewish state for defending itself.

 

MUSLIM WOMEN walk down Jaffa Road, toward the Old City of Jerusalem. Israel is a miracle of survival, coexistence, and moral struggle in a region too often consumed by hatred, says the writer.

(photo credit: Paushali Lass) 

I have been a supporter of Israel for many years because to do so is an integral part of my faith. Yet, before ever setting foot in the Land, my mind carried the burden of media narratives portraying Israel as an apartheid state – run by Europeans and Americans with white privilege, looking down on brown people like me, with Palestinians cast as helpless victims.

These portrayals left me conflicted. If this was the land God called His own, and His people were meant to be a light unto the nations, how could such injustice exist? I needed to see for myself, especially since Palestinians, too, are created in God’s image.

 

On the day I first landed in Israel, I felt as if I was stepping into a dream – the Holy Land! I could have kissed the soil.

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But I was also apprehensive. Would the “white Israelis” treat me differently because of my skin color? But I was in for a surprise. I saw people who looked like me – brown, tanned, Middle Eastern Jews, from Yemen, Morocco, Ethiopia, Iran, India... I felt at home. No one stared. No one made me feel unwelcome.

Palestinians walk near an Israeli checkpoint, as they make their way to Al-Aqsa compound, also known to Jews as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City, to attend the last Friday prayers during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Bethlehem in the West Bank, March 28, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/MUSSA QAWASMA)

A hijacked ride, a sobering realization

Then something unexpected happened. A taxi driver from East Jerusalem persuaded me to take a short detour, only to drive me straight into Bethlehem, Area A, a Palestinian Authority-controlled zone, where Israelis are forbidden to enter for their safety.

 

I was nervous but curious. After all, I had come to understand the Palestinian plight, right?

There were no soldiers or checkpoints stopping me. No interrogation because of my brown skin. No sign of the “military occupation” I’d heard so much about. That narrative crumbled quickly.

 

Instead, soon I found myself among Palestinians, many of whom were desperate to work in Israel.

 

“If Israel is so oppressive,” I asked, “Why do you want to work there?” 

 

Their answer was simple: “Because the PA doesn’t pay fair wages. Israel does.”

 

Eight hours and a couple thousand shekels lighter, I returned to Jerusalem – shaken, confused, eager to learn more.

 

That one afternoon had shattered more myths than any book or headline ever could.

Since then, I’ve returned to Israel many times. Each visit has brought new evidence against the apartheid lie.

 

I’ve seen Arab families enjoying Tel Aviv’s beaches, Arab doctors and nurses caring for Jewish patients, Arab cashiers working peacefully in Jewish communities, and Jerusalem buses filled with Arabs and Jews sitting side by side – unbothered by each other’s presence – even after October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust.

Polls reveal a surge in Hamas support across the West Bank since October 7. In most countries, such violence would slam borders shut and deepen divisions. In Israel, however, despite the violence, Palestinians still work in Jewish shops and share the same highways, driving side by side with Israeli cars.

Common sense is not racism

During Hanukkah 2023, I visited Jewish friends in Judea and Samaria, known as the West Bank. Their home overlooked a neighboring Arab village, separated only by a barbed-wire fence. Before October 7, hundreds of Palestinians came daily to work in the town – some with access codes to buildings and kindergartens.

 

After the massacre, can you blame a mother for feeling nervous? That isn’t racism – it’s common sense when neighbors might be complicit in violence. Sadly, many hardworking Palestinians lost their jobs in Jewish towns due to the Israel-Hamas War and the resulting mistrust. Yet, at a local supermarket, I still saw smiling Palestinian employees serving Jewish customers. Rare, yes – but it exists. Is this what apartheid looks like?

The real apartheid

I dislike throwing around the word “apartheid,” but what I saw in Israel that perhaps most closely resembles apartheid is not the result of Jews controlling Arabs. It emanates from the Jordanian Waqf – the authority that controls the Islamic buildings on Temple Mount – and is applied to Jews, particularly those who are religious. Mount Moriah, the holiest site in Judaism, where the First and Second Temples stood, remains in a fragile status quo meant to keep peace, and Jews are barely tolerated there today. Forbidden to pray, they are seen as threats on their own sacred ground.

 

On a recent visit to the mount with a Jewish group, Israeli police monitored us closely, rushing us through to avoid “provoking” Muslims. Meanwhile, Palestinian families picnicked and children played football on the very grounds we consider holy. We were treated like intruders.

Home to matriarchs and patriarchs

Hebron is home to the “Cave of the Patriarchs” and matriarchs. Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebecca, Jacob, and Leah are all buried there. But Jews largely cannot visit the tombs of Isaac and Rebecca because those sites lie in a Muslim-designated area closed to Jews except on a few special days each year. Jews are allowed to live in and visit only three percent of Hebron; the other 97% is off-limits.

 

And yet the world accuses Israel of apartheid?

 

When people chant “Apartheid Israel,” I know it to be nonsense and lies. The world ignores when Jews are excluded, discriminated against, and denied freedom of worship on their own ancestral land.This isn’t about politics; it’s about religious rights, historical truth, and basic human decency.

Coexistence, not caricature

I’ve spent time in Jewish communities where “settlers” live. Not “violent extremists,” as the media claims, but warm, faith-filled families longing for peace. Many want to build bridges with Arab neighbors. But peace requires trust. If you reach out and get knifed in return, is it racist to take measures that protect your children?

 

In Hebron, I’ve seen Arab and Jewish children play within sight of each other. I’ve greeted Arab neighbors and been greeted back. This is the reality – not the demonized caricature in global headlines.

 

Yes, discrimination exists in Israel, as in any country with diverse populations. But apartheid? No.In Israel, Israeli Arabs serve in Parliament, the Supreme Court, and the military, while the call to Islamic prayer echoes across Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Jerusalem.

 

What you won’t find in Israel is racial segregation enshrined in law. Instead, you’ll see a people who, even while facing existential threats and doing all they can to survive, offer dignity, coexistence, and opportunity to those who don’t seek their destruction.

 

Israel is not an apartheid state. It’s a miracle of survival, coexistence, and moral struggle in a region too often consumed by hatred.

 

The open discrimination I’ve witnessed in the Holy Land is the one the world refuses to acknowledge. It denies Jews access to their holiest places and demonizes the one Jewish state for defending itself.

 

The rest? Just unicorns in the sky.

 

Paushali Lass is a German-Indian writer dedicated to strengthening ties between Israel and the global community.

Source: https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-860059

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