Palestinian Dabke Troupe from Lajee Center dance to Fairuz song in Dundee Scotland 2012

The Lajee troupe are back in Scotland again in June 2013 and will also tour Ireland the same month. Young dancers from the Lajee cultural centre http://www.lajee.org/ in Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem, Palestine began a tour of the UK starting in Dundee, Scotland on 9th June 2012 at the Justice for Palestine Festival event hosted by Tayside for Justice in Palestine http://taysideforjusticeinpalestine.org/ and also performed in Glasgow and Edinburgh and will be touring England. They performed Dabke dances in colourful costumes. This one was performed to the song Sayfon Fal Youch'har. Dabka is an energetic dance with some agile footwork which in some parts reminds me a little of Irish folk dancing and at other moments when they cross the legs over it is a bit like Greek dancing and at other times when the men jump down low it is similar to Russian dancing. Dabka is a style of traditional Arab folk dancing typically performed at wedding ceremonies, birthday parties and community celebrations in Palestine prior to 1948 but since then it has become a form of resistance to the occupation. Culture, music, art, dance, poetry etc is a form of expression but it also gives hope and enjoyment to those suffering under the brutal occupation and is also a message of defiance to the occupiers that the Palestinians' spirit will not be broken. In 1948 750000 Palestinians were driven from their homes when the Zionist state was set up. They fled to refugee camps, and even took their house keys thinking that they would be able to return after a while. But instead of getting back their homes, lands and farms, the Zionist occupation pushed further into Palestinian territory and continues to do so until there will be no Palestine left if the Zionist regime gets its way. As part of the occupation plan many Palestinian homes and farms have been destroyed and anyone who resists is killed. Even children and babies have been butchered by the occupying forces. Children throwing stones at the occupying tanks are often shot dead by the occupying soldiers. Likewise, if kids throw stones back in retaliation at illegal settlers' kids who targetted them first, they are often shot by the military. As well as directly killing people with weapons, guns and tanks, or bulldozing houses with people still in them, various other methods are used to try and make life so unbearable for the Palestinians that they will either leave voluntarily or die in the desperately harsh conditions, for instance, raw sewage from the illegal settlements is poured onto Palestinian farms. In Gaza, raw sewage now also runs down the streets because no materials for repairing the Palestinians' sewage treatment plant are allowed in. The drinking water supply allowed through is contaminated with high levels of nitrates and chlorides. Palestinians are persecuted whether they stay in Gaza or the West Bank refugee camps. People have to wait, sometimes for hours to get through military checkpoints. Lorries transporting Palestinian produce are often refused through for days in order to let the food perish. Palestinian young people and children are routinely arrested for attending a demonstration or simply for hanging about and they are tried as adults if they are tried at all. Many are detained indefinitely without trial. Like many political prisoners they are tortured. 25 year old Mahmoud Sarsak a promising young Gazan footballer was arrested on his way to join Balata Football Club in the West Bank and imprisoned without charge or trial for 3 years so he began a hunger strike to demand that they either release him or give him a trial. He was close to death when they finally agreed a release date, July 10th 2012. Footballer Eric Cantona has called for Mahmoud's release. See http://www.foa.org.uk/statements/cant... Same link for details of handing over letter to minister of sport in London 15/06/12 and Edinburgh football protest 16/06/12. More info on his health http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/a... The FIFA president Joseph Blatter also formally called for his release. Now Mahmoud is free but other prisoners still remain on hunger strike: Read more at http://www.addameer.org The purpose of the Justice for Palestine Festival in Dundee and the Dabka dance group's tour of Britain is not only for cultural and entertainment purposes but also and especially to help educate people about the illegal occupation and genocide being perpetrated on the Palestinians and the apartheid system with its high walls and checkpoints and racism towards Israeli Arabs and Blacks. Boycott, divestment and sanctions helped bring down apartheid in South Africa. You can do the same by boycotting Israeli products and culture and sport or by contacting your MP to ask what they are doing to put pressure on the apartheid state.