{"product_id":"travels-with-bassem-a-palestinian-and-a-jew-find-friendship-in-a-war-torn-land-paperback","title":"Travels with Bassem: A Palestinian and a Jew Find Friendship in a War-Torn Land - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eMike Sager\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the summer of 1988, about six months into the First Palestinian Intifada-an uprising by Palestinians against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip-journalist Mike Sager, a Jew, was sent by the \u003ci\u003eWashington Post Sunday Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e to investigate the human toll of the uprising. While much was known about the political situation at the time, little had been reported about the actual conditions of Palestinians living as refugees in squalid camps on or near lands that were once owned by their ancestors.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOnce in Jerusalem, walking through the Old City on a \u003ci\u003eShabbat\u003c\/i\u003e evening after visiting the Western Wall, Sager met Bassem Hallak. Hallak was a Muslim and the proprietor of a family shop specializing in Palestinian antiquities on the Via Dolorosa, the cobbled street over which Jesus Christ is said to have carried his cross on the way to his crucifixion. At times, Hallak, who spoke English, German, French, Italian, Hebrew, and Arabic, worked as a tour guide and as a translator for visiting journalists. Meanwhile, he was secretly working as part of the resistance movement that spawned the Intifada.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWithin a few days, Sager had engaged Hallak as a guide and translator, and for the next six weeks, these two men, close in age but from wildly different backgrounds, crisscrossed the Holy Land together. They visited hospitals, cities, and refugee camps, witnessing the toll of the struggle, clashing at times with Israeli forces, and ultimately building a friendship as they learned that their similarities and growing affection far outweighed their differences.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe controversial story was spiked by the magazine. It was later published to critical acclaim in a 2004 collection called \u003ci\u003eKilled: Great Journalism Too Hot to Print.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHallak died of a heart attack in late 2014, at the age of 54, in his family's home in the Mount of Olives, while awaiting an ambulance, which had been held up at various checkpoints on the way to his aid.\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 66\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.16 x 8.5 x 5.5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 16, 2015\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53247598854451,"sku":"9780991662999","price":20.82,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0300\/5595\/6612\/files\/tfltKck_kb9780991662999.webp?v=1776305292","url":"https:\/\/www.vysn.com\/en-ca\/products\/travels-with-bassem-a-palestinian-and-a-jew-find-friendship-in-a-war-torn-land-paperback","provider":"VYSN","version":"1.0","type":"link"}