IN STEREO

This square, they wanted to restore it. Here it is; come here! You didn’t see this? They scrapped it with a bulldozer. There were rooms below. All under it, there were houses, homes. I saw them; I saw them with my own eyes. The rooms were old construction. When they discovered it, there were mosaics. I saw them all; the rooms were visible. You’re convinced by this speech? This is a story that I saw with my eyes. Not only me, everyone in this area saw it. If [you] had been here, I’d have shown [you]. They closed it! They covered them again. So that’s it. It’s paved, as you see. This is the municipality’s persuasion. This street was asphalt. They supplied water lines [and] power lines underneath, and they covered it and tiled it. But I wish it had stayed asphalt. If they go back to asphalt, it would be better. This stone hurts when you walk.

I’m telling you, it’s not only me who has difficulty. Everyone has difficulty. I mean, this is too tiring. [But] I myself can do nothing. Development is in the hands of the municipality. The citizen can do nothing. Really, look, municipalities in general, they do nothing. I mean, they fix some things, but they change nothing. It’s not possible. [In 2002,] the Jewish-Israelis were here. I don’t know what they wanted to do. There were armed young men. They took them from [their] homes, those young men, and the rest entered the church. The Israeli army came [and] surrounded the church and imposed a curfew. After some days, they permitted people to go out, only for four hours, for purchases. And then they freed them. Some of them were sent to Jordan and others abroad. We don’t know what the future is hiding for you and me. We don’t know. – Mahmud