The army burst into the flat at 3 am. Khalid and his wife Wafa were in bed when they were asked for their ID. He showed the blue ID of a Jerusalemite and his wife showed the green pass of a West Banker. The soldiers ordered Wafa out. As the holder of a green pass she was forbidden to stay overnight in Jerusalem, even with her husband.
Wafa at last managed to get a one-year Jerusalem permit but the Ministry of the Interior made it clear she would lose it if any member of her family in the West Bank was caught demonstrating against the occupation.
Likewise if Khalid failed to pay his taxes or his electricity or water bill, her next application to renew her permit would be refused.
Their daughter Sabine, 5, cannot be registered because she does not have both parents born in Jerusalem. She won’t be able to go to a state school. When she’s older, she won’t be able to work in Jerusalem.
“Their aim is to make every Palestinian feel insecure and unstable and so to evacuate Jerusalem of all its Palestinian residents,” says Khalid.
“Any time they can come and take my wife away. But I will stay at home with my wife and try to protect her. I am not going to leave my home or my land. I will not leave the capital of Palestine.”