JERUSALEM — In a step apparently motivated by both nationalism and economics, a Ramallah-based group has published the first Palestinian tour guide for the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
“You have Israeli, biblical, Christian, and foreign interpretations,” co-author Adel Yahya said this summer. “Now it is time for the Palestinians to have their own say in their own history and culture.
“This does not mean denying the other, but rather looking the other in the eye and saying this is how I interpret this country’s history.”
Yahya, an archeologist, heads the Palestinian Association for Cultural Exchange — a non-governmental organization that conducts Palestinian-led tours in the West Bank and Gaza.
The other authors are Hanna Abdel Nour, also of PACE, and Muin Sadeq, director of the Palestinian Authority’s Department of Antiquities in the Gaza Strip.
The book, “PACE Tour Guide of the West Bank and Gaza Strip — Palestine,” appears amid tensions between Israel and the Palestinian Authority over how to handle the large tourist influx expected next year.
The Palestinian Authority is wary over possible Israeli domination, and Israeli officials complain of a lack of Palestinian cooperation on logistics.
The book’s introduction states it was prompted in part to combat the lack of information available to tourists about the Palestinian areas.
Yahya said he would like to see Palestinian guides, shops and towns get a much larger share of attention from foreign tourists than they currently enjoy.
Much of the book deals with sites that Israeli tourists, even those who visited the areas while in uniform, have probably never heard of, such as the Mamluk Khan in Khan Yunis, excavations at Tell Jenin, and the scenic, apricot-producing Christian village of Jifna.
About Hebron, the book states: “Fanatical religious settlers have taken over buildings and whole areas in the center of town, where they live under the protection of the Israeli army.
“If you come with an Israeli tour, you will be quickly shown around the main sites and have little contact with the modern reality of Hebron, but if you come with a Palestinian guide you will probably have a chance to walk through the fantastic narrow streets of the old city and talk to the people of the town.”
Nitzan Ilan, assistant spokeswoman for the Israel Tourism Ministry, said that “in principle we view as positive the publication of guides to help tourists, as long as it encourages tourism.”
Shlomo Dror, spokesman for the Israeli government coordinator of activities in the territories, whose office has been working on tourism arrangements for 2000, took issue with the book.
“We can make a very nice guide reminding everyone of all the wars, the terrorist attacks, of how many Palestinians killed Israelis, and how many tourists were killed during the intifada. Do they think any tourists will come here with such a guide?” he said.
“Maybe it gives them a quick benefit; they can say, ‘We are OK and the Israelis are bad.’ But if you are thinking about bringing more tourists, and building relations with Israelis, you should choose a different way.”