My letter to the Washington Post RE Palestinian couple from Syrian refugee camp fulfills dream of marrying in the West Bank

 In this photograph made on Thursday, April 12, 2012, Palestinians wait with a horse to be used by the groom Thaer Qasem during his wedding with Maha Surougi in the West Bank village of Deir Istiya, near Nablus. The bride and the groom, Syrian citizens with Palestinian roots, who currently live in the Yarmouk Camp, were invited by the Palestinian government to celebrate their marriage in the West Bank. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

RE: Palestinian couple from Syrian refugee camp fulfills dream of marrying in the West Bank
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/palestinian-couple-from-syrian-refugee-camp-fulfills-dream-of-marrying-in-the-west-bank/2012/04/14/gIQAqGkOHT_story.html

Dear Editor,

I very much enjoyed the photos and the story "Palestinian couple from Syrian refugee camp fulfills dream of marrying in the West Bank." It was a happy story of dreams come true- made possible by the generosity of all who helped make that wedding possible, and all who happily celebrated and publicized the event.  Good to read some nice news regarding Palestine!

I did very much enjoy the article- but it is odd however, a tad discordant that there was no reference to the fact Israel controls all Palestinian borders and movement: "The traffic jam is a metaphor of our life stymied under Israeli occupation." Dr. Ali Qleibo Palestinians at the Israeli Checkpoint This Week in Palestine April 2012

I very much hope that the Israel/Palestine conflict ends soon-and that all Palestinian refugees who want to are able to return to rebuild their own lives, as well as a fully sovereign and free Palestinian state. Some of course will want to return to their original homes and lands in Israel, for that is what the right of return (a universal basic human right) really means. Return, real return, not more involuntary relocation and more forced transfer- and more home demolitions, and more forced exile. Men, women and children should not be denied freedom and rights and security and respect because they've been deemed the 'wrong' religion and thus are classified as a demographic threat, nor should tax payers (here and there) be forced to fund religious "scholars" and schemes.

Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab 

NOTES
"The mainstream Palestinian leadership in Ramallah has staked its future on a two-state agreement and an end to the occupation. Through the Arab Peace Initiative, the rest of the Arab world signaled unanimously that an Israeli-Palestinian final status agreement would also mean normalization between Israel and the Arab states. Plainly, most Palestinians, other Arabs and their governments would welcome an end to this destabilizing conflict." Hussein Ibish

"Where, after all, do universal human rights begin?

Palestinian Refugees (1948-NOW) refused their right to return... and their right to live in peace free from religious bigotry and injustice.