Accompanying shepherds in Samra, Jordan Valley

8:00 - Gil and I left for Samra to accompany shepherds to the pasture, and we met Meira there.  The goal, according to Nitzan’s definition, was to be present at the site because the shepherds are building their winter huts and are fearful of the army.  When we arrived, metal structures were already in place and the brothers waited for the contractor and workers.

After tea and coffee, Fawzi said that we’ll let the herds graze for two hours because it is a shame to miss out altogether.  We then went up the northern Wadi across the highway and grazed from north of the community’s wadi and from the east to the road of upper Umm Zuka.  Fawzi said that two years ago, Anat, Uri’s mother, from the Umm Zuka outpost, came to visit her son and on the way stopped to speak with Fawzi, whose herd was grazing next to the road.  There were Christian visitors in the area (obviously from abroad). Anat told him that the Christians are the true settlers, not the Jews, because the Jews, like Muslims, don’t eat pork...

The grazing passed quietly.  This time the flocks didn’t mix but were within sight some of the time on the slope between the upper Umm Zuka road and the Alon highway. It was very hot.

When we returned to the encampment, the workers were already there and working.  Shortly after we returned, Meira left and went to visit Farsia.  We sat with the shepherds in the shed that was being built next to Fawzi’s hut, in the southeast part of the community’s site.  They asked if they were permitted to bring a shovel to remove the manure. We asked the group, and Orly suggested that they speak with Burhan, from the neighboring Makhul encampment, who had brought a tractor with a shovel. They use the manure to fertilize their fields. Indeed, on our way back we saw piles of manure in the fields between Samra and Makhul.