Area resident visits Middle East
Nancy Benson witnesses Israeli-Palestinian strife, leaves with ‘great deal of hope’

By Scott Nicholson

A Blowing Rock woman took a closer look at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, having recently returned from a delegate tour of the Mideast.

Nancy Benson of Blowing Rock picks olives with a Palestinian family outside of the West Bank city of Jenin during a recent educational tour. Photos submitted

Nancy Benson went on a tour of the region in late October as part of an effort to promote awareness of the issues dividing the two nationalities. The tour was co-sponsored by Interfaith Peace-Builders and the American Friends Service Committee. 

Benson was a former coordinator for American Friends Service Committee efforts in Africa, and a Mideast visit earlier in her life kept it prominent in her thoughts.

Benson said the purpose of this delegation was to educate North American citizens about the region and deepen their understanding of its conflicts. “I’m very concerned about human rights and peace in that part of the world,” she said, adding that she was more interested in the social impacts on the people than the political implications.

Benson was on a European tour in 1960 when she visited Egypt, Jordan and Israel for the first time. She sought out prominent Christian landmarks like Bethlehem and Jericho. “I was stunned by seeing the religious sites, the beauty of the land and the friendliness of the people,” she said.

While in Jericho, she encountered a woman covered in black with a can of water on her head. The woman beckoned Benson to follow her, eventually leading her to a Palestinian refugee camp, where Benson was fed and learned more about their plight.

The recent trip came just as Israeli and Palestinian negotiators prepare for a November peace conference in Annapolis hosted by the United States.  The prospect of renewed peace negotiations has contributed to rising tensions in the region, according to American Friends Service Committee, which it says makes the work of peace and education organizations even more critical.

Benson said the beneficial aspect of the tour was mingling with the people whose lives are affected by the strife. “I’m not sure what the solution to the problem is,” Benson said.

“I thought there might be a two-state solution, but after seeing the problem on the ground, I’m not sure that’s possible.”

She said while Palestinians were being pushed out of Israel, the Israelis were themselves divided about how to address the issue.

Benson worked for the AFSC’s Africa Desk for many years supporting programs for women and villagers in Africa.  She has worked and lived in Mali, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia and Somalia with the AFSC and served as a Peace Corps volunteer in The Ivory Coast.  She has also traveled extensively in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, the former Soviet Union, Japan and Central America.

Benson’s trip also included a hands-on component. The delegation focused on the Palestinian olive harvest that takes place each autumn, climbing ladders and picking produce.  The olive harvest is an occasion of particular cultural and economic importance for Palestinian communities and a time when tensions between Israeli settlers and Palestinian residents of the West Bank run high. 

The group visited the Palestinian Fair Trade Association’s Olive Harvest Festival and supported Palestinian farmers harvesting olives near the cities of Jenin and Bethlehem.

The olive harvest is an important social, economic and cultural tradition for Palestinians and a time when right-wing Israeli settlers often launch attacks against Palestinian farmers in their fields.

“This trip wasn’t political, but educational,” Benson said.

Locally, Benson has been active joining other women in vigils in downtown Boone, where the participants dress in black and read out the names of the American soldiers killed in Iraq.

Benson is optimistic that a peaceful resolution is possible in the Mideast. “I was struck by the fact that so many groups were working toward a nonviolent solution,” she said. “I came away with a great deal of hope.”