Leitrim woman returns from the West Bank

Standing before a small crowd, Carrick-on-Shannon resident Lisa Hitchen gestures to a map of the West Bank. For someone who grew up amidst the turmoil of West Belfast, she explains, her experiences there pale in comparison to the daily reality in Palestine. “There is absolutely no comparison to the occupation of the North of Ireland to what’s going on in Palestine. It’s on a completely different level,” she says.

Hitchen has returned from a transformative three-month mission in Tulkarm, where she served as a human rights monitor covering Jenin and Nablus. As part of the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI), an initiative of the World Council of Churches coordinated in the UK and Ireland by Quakers Peace and Social Witness, Lisa witnessed daily human rights violations and the ongoing struggles faced by Palestinian communities living under occupation.

“Because of the security situation, lots of our volunteers are no longer getting entry into Israel. If they get even a hint that you’re coming to monitor human rights, you’re denied entry,” she says, emphasizing the increasing difficulty of international presence in the region.

As a human rights monitor, Hitchen’s role was to document and witness the violations experienced by Palestinian communities under occupation. “We live within a Palestinian community, and we monitor, record, and document human rights violations that we see. The information we collect is used by the UN and other organizations to gather facts and support global human rights efforts.

She draws a parallel to Belfast, “I don’t know if anyone remembers the Holy Cross school in Belfast, where children had to be escorted because of intimidation from paramilitaries. Palestinian children endure similar violence coming to and from school.” Visibility, she stresses, is their best deterrent to prevent violence from either Israeli military forces or settlers.

Her role also required accompanying Palestinian farmers to their lands, providing protection from the violence of Israeli settlers and military. “We shepherd farmers in their lands,” she says, referring to the concept of “protective presence” – the idea that the simple act of being there as internationals can help prevent harm.

The audience leans in as she describes her work, first in the northern West Bank, in towns like Jenin and Nablus, and most recently in East Jerusalem. She paints a picture of a fractured region, where military occupation permeates every aspect of life. “It controls every single aspect of every person’s life—access to livelihood, worship, education, health. It’s very, very hard to even describe,” she says.

Her role as a human rights monitor has brought her face-to-face with what she calls an apartheid system. She explains, “Israeli Jewish citizens, if they commit an offense, are tried under Israeli law, whereas Palestinians are tried under military law and in military courts.” The inequity is stark and unrelenting.

She discusses the subject of settlements, illegal under international law, but thriving within the West Bank. “The UN puts the figure at 700,000 Israeli Jewish citizens who have been moved to live within this area. That is completely illegal under international law. An occupying force is not allowed to move its own citizens into occupying territory,” she explains, pointing to sprawling cities that belie the term settlement. “When I first went over there and heard the word ‘settlement,’ I didn’t know what I thought it was. But they’re actually towns, cities, villages. Some of them have universities in them.”

Her work often involved monitoring checkpoints, crucial checkpoints in the lives of Palestinians. “There are over 100 permits in occupied Palestine that Palestinians need to access work, worship, build a house, go to mass, or get married. It’s very, very complicated,” she says. But since October 7th, a chilling shift has occurred. “Most people’s permits have been cancelled—work permits, livelihood permits. People can’t pass through the checkpoints because they’re literally closed.”

The narrative takes a darker turn as she discusses demolitions and forced displacement. “The military comes along, serves you a demolition order, and says your properties and houses were built without a proper permit. Then they demolish it. Sometimes they don’t even serve the order—they just pin a notice on a wall or fence,” she recounts. These demolitions uproot farming communities, leaving families with nothing.

“Israel is the only country in the world that takes children out of their own country and imprisons them in Israeli prisons. Children as young as 12.” It’s a reality she’s seen too often, and it’s one of the hardest aspects of her work to accept.

For all its challenges, she emphasizes the importance of bearing witness. “It’s not safe, not only for myself, but it wouldn’t even be safe for Palestinians to leave their own areas either. Their lives are just really, they’re just totally unbearable,” she says.

Her mission, she concludes, is to amplify those voices that are often silenced in global discourse. “Understanding what’s happening there is the first step toward making a difference,” she says.

An Israeli post on a hill over a Palestine community, set up to intimate Palestinians.