Beyond Climbing: Voices on Palestinian Resistance
Photo credit: Brooke Anderson ©Brooke Anderson Photography
Since last October, 38,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli military forces. Despite this, Palestinians continue to hold on to faith, family and hope. That emotional resilience is embedded in their history and culture. Who in the community has forgotten the 1948 Nakba, when 700,000 Palestinians were violently driven from their homes in an act of ethnic cleansing that helped establish the state of Israel? The collective trauma of decades of apartheid doesn’t go away either.
Resisting oppression means finding strength to rebuild their communities; it means embodying perseverance and unwavering determination. It also means finding joy in the midst of suffering.
That much was evident in the four climbers I had the opportunity to interview for this article. Whether living in the occupied West Bank or in the U.S., Palestinian athletes and their supporters are using their voices to speak up against genocide and build communities around a passion for the outdoors. Their determination is a reminder that this sport is about so much more than just climbing walls.
The following interviews have been edited for clarity and brevity.
Editor’s Note: Nadah Feteih is Egyptian and identifies as a supporter of Palestine—not as Palestinian. We apologize for the confusion this may have caused.
“But as someone who has identified as a climber for so long, I really wish our community could be a safe place for people to speak out about injustice anywhere in the world; even when it’s not the popular stance.”
Miranda lead climbing in Palestine. Photo credit: Julie Ellison (©Julie Ellison Photography)
What does it mean to be a Palestinian climber at this moment in time?
At this moment in time it's difficult to be such an embedded member of the climbing community and watch how people ignore or make apologies for what is happening to the Palestinian people. During the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, it was really cool to see how the climbing community got involved in important social justice issues. This is part of the reason it's so frustrating to hear almost nothing from the climbing community now—especially high profile athletes and bigger climbing brands.
I lost sponsorships in 2023 after I had been sharing posts about social justice for Palestinians and about ending the genocide in Gaza and the occupation. I still don’t know if that was related to why I got dropped. So I guess I understand why some athletes are not speaking out. But as someone who has identified as a climber for so long, I really wish our community could be a safe place for people to speak out about injustice anywhere in the world; even when it's not the popular stance. I want people to speak out without fearing retaliation from other members of the community or the brands that support them.
I’ve always been afraid to tell people I am Palestinian. In the climbing community, at times I have felt that I can be more open about that. Now I am more afraid than ever to tell people that I am Palestinian especially in the climbing community.
“For the first time, I saw the horrors of the illegal Israeli military occupation and the apartheid in person.”
As someone who had the opportunity to visit Palestine in 2017 and 2019, how did you feel when engaging with a community of people whose identity is vastly overlooked?
I’ve been climbing since the year 2000 and I’ve been Palestinian American my whole life. I never thought these two worlds would intersect. In 2015 I read an Al Jazeera article about Wadi Climbing and new climbing development in Palestine. I grew up in a world of climbing that was not very diverse. I had never even met another Palestinian American climber. I was really interested in getting to know the climbing community in Palestine.
I had the amazing opportunity to do that in 2017. I have traveled all over the world to climb and I’ve always found welcoming communities. I found the Palestinian climbing community to be one of the most welcoming I’ve ever met. They took me in as one of their own. I really felt like I belonged there. I made some strong connections to people who grew up in a vastly different world than I did. We bonded over our mutual love for climbing, adventure and the outdoor world.
For the first time, I saw the horrors of the illegal Israeli military occupation and the apartheid in person. Until then, I had only heard about it from family members. It felt so strange because I had an American passport (and an American name). I had more right to freedom of movement than my Palestinian friends who had lived in that region their whole lives. Everything I had heard about came true through the stories of the Palestinians I met.
In what ways has climbing served as a means of resistance against oppression for Palestinian climbers?
Right now everyone is focused on the genocide in Gaza, but it's important to remember that what is happening in the West Bank is horrifying as well. Israeli settlers are terrorizing innocent Palestinians in the West Bank. This is an ongoing problem that has gotten much worse in the last year or so. Israelis continue to steal land, destroy homes, assault innocent people, burn down olive trees and do whatever they can to make Palestinians scared to go out.
From what I’ve heard from Palestinians, going cragging is also affected by the ongoing and illegal Israeli military occupation. I’ve heard stories of Palestinian climbers being terrorized by Israeli settlers and soldiers with automatic weapons while climbing and developing routes on Palestinian land. For them, the act of going out to the crags, despite these horrific circumstances, is in itself an act of resistance.
In what ways do you hope climbing continues to be a force for good?
At this point I have lost hope for the climbing being a force for good on a community or world level. From the last six months, I have learned that most people in the climbing community are only supportive of social justice issues when it's convenient or in vogue to do so.
The fact that the bulk of the people, athletes and brands that make up the climbing community in the U.S. haven’t said or done anything to protest the ongoing genocide in Gaza, the Israeli apartheid system or the countless human rights abuses by Israel, makes me think that climbing is only for the privileged few, and those few don’t care about these issues because it doesn’t get them any likes on social media.
That said, there are small facets of the climbing community around the world who are organizing around this. More people have been raising money and awareness about the occupation and genocide happening to Palestinians. There are movements like “Climb the Wall'' organized by climbers to collectively climb the distance of the Apartheid Wall separating Palestinian and Israeli territories. These smaller movements inspire me to do more.
“I have been trying to introduce our political situation to tourists through climbing. They can witness the occupation, the apartheid wall, and what it means to live under segregated land.”
Wadi Climbing Director Momin Abuyacoub sets a route. Photo credit: Abdallah Motan (©Abdallah Motan Productions)
As the Wadi Climbing Director, what unique climbing experiences can one find in Palestine?
When climbing in Palestine, tourists can see firsthand what our experiences are like. I have been trying to introduce our political situation to tourists through climbing. They can witness the occupation, the apartheid wall, and what it means to live under segregated land.
Despite the occupation, I encourage tourists from all over the world to visit us in the occupied West Bank. People that arrive in Jerusalem can take a bus to Ramallah.
We have 13 climbing locations in the Occupied West Bank. We have unfortunately faced harassment from settlers in three locations. All of these issues occurred before the 7th of October. In fact, our people have faced this kind of oppression since the Nakba “the catastrophe” which led to the formation of the state of Israel in 1948.
What were the climbing spots and what happened?
First time we faced trouble from illegal settlers was when we started bolting and establishing a new climbing spot in Burqa, Ramallah. Settlers have this ideology that “God gave us this land,” therefore any action to stop us from bolting is acceptable. They tout religious verses and couple it with a militant approach that impedes our ability to climb freely. They don’t have documents or anything, but refer to this holy book to steal land. If you have the right to be here, you don’t actually need to use religion; that is not how it works. These are Palestinian lands and the Palestinian people have been here for thousands of years no matter what their religion is.
In Ramallah, the settlers brought soldiers as back up and informed us to leave the area without any reason. We left, but then came back as we didn’t feel it was right to leave. We continued our bolting project and in one year we finished it, with 17 different routes! We organized many trips there.
The second location is in Ein Yabrud, near Beit El settlement. Our team, Amal, Elia, and Sara went there many times and the soldiers kept evacuating them for the sake of the comfort of settlers in that area.
On the 6th of October, Amal was being harassed by three Israeli soldiers. To prevent her from climbing, they kicked her and her friends out.
The third location is a natural resort near Hizma called Ein Fara; the settlers have built a settlement above the valley. Basically, Israelis can go to that spot with their own cars from the settlement, it takes them 5 mins to reach there but we have to hike around it for 40 minutes to reach the crags.
How did you navigate these moments?
What I try to do in these situations is to avoid escalation and to record the settlers and the soldiers. This is how we protect ourselves and prove that we are not doing anything wrong.
I remember I was trying to have a logical conversation with soldiers and settlers to avoid the tension, but they acted aggressively. They claim to have impunity which they feel gives them the upper hand. With this attitude, it makes it very difficult to just talk without being subject to further abuse. But, in the end, staying home is not the solution. We try to keep climbing, preferably in groups. That’s why I organized many trips with my friend to the climbing spot in Burqa, Ramallah. One time, we even had more than 40 people join us.
Sometimes, as an alternative, we look for more spots to bolt, where there aren’t settlements around. Lately during the war, we managed to finish bolting our new project in Bethlehem, Wadi Alghoul. Then, we started to bolt a new project in Silwad near Ramallah. This is a new location with no settlements around. Opportunities like this make us feel safe since we have limited access to our lands in the occupied West Bank.
We also build and maintain climbing walls as a way to bring more children and youth to practice climbing inside the cities. Mujahed, my brother, had built the first climbing wall in Shufat refugee camps near Jerusalem. We also reconstructed a wall in Beit Jala, Bethlehem to make it climbable. In addition, we make sure to keep the bouldering gym in Ramallah open so we can host local and international climbers every day.
What values do you instill in climbers at Wadi and those that want to explore routes in Palestine?
We have different values we try to teach the participants. We believe in no competition, being careful, respectful, trustworthy, modest and courageous. For our climbing trips, we try to add more joyful activities. We have fun by bringing traditional food or making tea with wild sage after climbing. I think this way, we become like a family and we maintain our friendships among us.
We focus on strengthening the children’s physical health and mental well-being, especially girls. Nowadays, we have a group of young girls who can train basic climbing and instructions for other participants.
Despite the obstacles we continue to face on a daily basis, we have a great team that works on eight different projects that serve people of all genders and ages. It’s been almost 3.5 years and we’re excited to keep moving forward. Check out our projects on www.wadiclimbing.org.
“Recognizing the sport of climbing in Palestine is a means of acknowledging our existence not only as a people, but as a country.”
Hiba enjoys a top roping climb. Photo credit: Christopher Weidner
The IFSC (International Federation for Sport Climbing) recently recognized Palestinian climbers to compete in World Cups and Olympics competitions. What does it mean to have a renowned climbing federation recognize Palestine?
Recognizing the sport of climbing in Palestine is a means of acknowledging our existence not only as a people, but as a country. It gives us the goal of working on our community to raise young athletes in the sport.
How do you think this will inspire future climbers in Palestine and those who have yet to be recognized?
Being able to compete internationally will give hope and motivation to any athlete from here. More youth will be willing to join this sport through us and with added purpose to their climbing careers. We hope that young athletes stay committed and give a lifetime of training to develop the skills needed to be in the Olympics.
I've read that Palestinian climbers feel safer climbing with their white-counterparts. How do you think this decision will change the way climbing operates in Palestine? Will climbing while Palestinian ever feel safe?
It's always different according to the situation, but, we as Palestinians sometimes feel different treatment when there are foreigners with us; whether it was at a checkpoint or climbing site, etc.
In what ways do you see the Palestinian Climbing Association shaping the future of climbing in Palestine and beyond?
Locally, we will strengthen the community with all the knowledge, skills and certificates that are needed to yield stronger climbers and athletes. We hope to provide certified climbing trainers, route setters and judges to attend the international competitions. On the other hand, we are looking forward to protecting the outdoor climbing areas and establishing more routes. Collaborating with municipalities to make it a national park for climbing, as we did in the most-used area in Ramallah (Ein Kinia) is definitely something we’re planning for. Eventually, building a climbing gym as a hub for all climbers and to faciliate training for the climbing national team would be ideal. I believe that this is how we can reach more Palestinians and give them the awareness of the existence of this new sport in the country.
“A lot of us over the past several months have felt a lot of grief and have struggled to find safe spaces with other Muslims who are feeling the same way.”
Nadah poses at one of her climbing clinics. Photo credit: Nadah Feteih
As an Egyptian Muslim woman who embraces the outdoors, what moment in your life inspired the forming of Ma'wa Collective?
It was after years of wanting to travel more and wanting to be outside more—to be more adventurous. This made my parents concerned and uncomfortable as they had trouble understanding these pursuits and were concerned for my safety. They felt comfortable if I was with a group, organization, or particularly a group of women.. This sounded way better than running off and traveling by myself. My struggle to find other women like me was what motivated me to organize experiences for Muslim women who love the outdoors.
What are the most prominent challenges Muslim women face in the outdoors?
There aren’t a lot of places where we can be our whole selves, places where we can experience the outdoors with others that we identify with. Building Ma’wa Collective has been a solution to that.
How has Ma’wa Collective been a place of refuge, for members who have family and loved ones impacted by the genocide in Palestine and tragedies worldwide?
A lot of us over the past several months have felt a lot of grief and have struggled to find safe spaces with other Muslims who are feeling the same way. When we have gotten together, we acknowledge the privilege to disconnect, but not as an escape. It’s as a means to re-energize ourselves to go back to the cause and the movement to free Palestine and the Palestinian people.
I think that we all need time to heal. We want to continue offering that through our weekend excursions. It’s where community members outside the collective also find value.
You recently organized a climbing clinic with Miranda teaching a full day course in Joshua Tree. Can you share any highlights from the climbing clinic with Miranda that positively impacted you and the attendees?
I’m really glad that we had a film screening of Resistance Climbing. I had watched it a year prior and felt that it was important to share.
A lot of climbers that were not Muslim came out. There were so many questions about what was happening in Gaza and around Palestine. The proceeds to this event were donated to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. This climbing clinic and film screening provided many an open channel for healthy dialogue and actionable next steps.
For anyone looking to start their own collective, but struggle to reconcile their safety while moving purposefully, what advice do you have for them?
You don’t have to have everything figured out to take action or start something new. I encourage folks to lean into purpose and their power to make a difference and build communities. When we do that individually, we collectively do our best to create spaces worth existing in.
“In a world that seems devoid of heart, resistance is confirmation of our humanity.”
Message
Photo credit: Miranda Oakley
Within these four perspectives, the throughline of stopping the genocide and creating an equitable space in the outdoors for Palestinians is clear. This effort to speak up for those whose identities and livelihoods have been erased for close to a century since the Nakba is a worthy cause—even (and especially) if you aren’t personally affected. Despite the hardships that Palestinian people and their supporters experience around the world, we see the light of hope mediated through courageous action. In a world that seems devoid of heart, resistance is confirmation of our humanity.
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