One
Shot in Ramallah
By
Michael Penn MA'97
Before you were shot, you were interviewing people
about the boundaries of the conflict —
about what was still considered out-of-bounds between
these combatants. Do you now see yourself as an example
of how little is off-limits in this battle?
I was told by friends that the conflict was far "dirtier"
than it had been ever before, and I shared that assessment
as I left. I think there's a certain degree of dehumanization
that pervades the struggle, on both sides. It's a
dehumanization that allows suicide bombings to claim
innocent Israeli lives, and it's the dehumanization
that allows the collective punishment inflicted by
Israel's occupation. In Ramallah, much of that came
together. I had gone there to cover Israel's response
to a suicide bombing and the carnage it caused. Once
there, I saw it played out — civilians killed,
doctors arrested, hospitals invaded. My sense is that
few red lines are left in this war.
With
both sides so willing to cross those red lines, do
you think they've been erased for good?
Is there any going back? That's a tough question.
Like I said, I think the situation has deteriorated
remarkably from even a year or two ago. Can it return
to, say, the optimism after the Oslo Accords were
signed? I don't know. Right now, I'm a little pessimistic.
But the same thing might have been said after the
1973 Arab-Israeli war. And in that instance, the Camp
David Accords between Egypt and Israel were signed
five years later.
Your
interest in this conflict goes back to when you were
a student, correct?
My desire to cover the Middle East was long-standing,
even before I enrolled at UW-Madison. If anything,
my time on campus bolstered that wish. I studied Arabic
there, as well as journalism.
So
— even back then — you imagined
having the sort of career you have now?
While I obviously didn't plan to get shot, I was drawn
to the story, both in Israel and the Palestinian territories,
and in the Arab and Muslim world. It's a region that
interests me, one whose stories have far-reaching
repercussions beyond its borders. For a journalist,
it's somewhat rare that you know the stories you write
will automatically have resonance.
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