“Jerusalem…The east side story” Film Review
“We live in fantasy, they live in denial, and one day we should both come to reality.”
Was it sheer coincidence, sad irony, or just another day in Palestine under Israeli military occupation? My father and I drove through the last Israeli checkpoint between Ramallah and Jerusalem while heading to the Palestinian National Theatre at the invitation of The Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees to attend the premiere of a new documentary on Jerusalem. The car radio switched from music to a news report — a Palestinian home in Jerusalem was demolished that morning by Israeli occupation authorities, leaving yet another Palestinian family homeless. We sighed in disgust but did not comment to one another because there was nothing new to say.
As we entered the plaza of the theatre, we were met by film director Mohammed Alatar. Alatar is known for his outstanding previous documentary, The Iron Wall, which depicts the Israeli strategy of creating facts on the ground — facts that are rapidly precluding a negotiated peace between Palestinians and Israelis.
The theatre was packed. Palestinian Jerusalemites both young and old, staff from dozens of international agencies based in Jerusalem, donor representatives, foreign representatives, media, and the crew that produced…