Talents in Batir!

Today I was very lucky: Anaya, Rena and Hanan from the new MwB women group invited some very talented youth from their village Batir to share their traditional culture with me.
Seven boys, age 12-14, danced dabke, a traditional Palestinian dance, and Esra' , a young girl, recited the poem "Afwan Fairuz". The poem is about the longing for Jerusalem.
Batir, the village where Esra' lives, is only ten kilometers away from Jerusalem, but she and many other Palestinians are not allowed to enter this city.
She recited the poem with lots of emotion and musicality in her voice and one of the women in the audience told me she got the shivers while listening to her beautiful voice.

Esra' reciting the poem

The dabke of the boys was very impressive. They worked in a very mature way with each other and showed different dance techniques.

Boys from Batir dancing Dabke in the
Batir Center for Women and Children

Fabienne van Eck
Local Project Manager