Trouble

At about 6.30pm as Yom Kippur began, there was a stabbing at Musrara outside Damascus Gate. I was on my way out to meet my volunteers when my security friends stopped me and told me not to go out of Damascus Gate as it's dangerous. They called out to their security centre if it was safe to go out and were told the Gate was closed. So they told me to go through the Old City and to New Gate instead. Luckily where my volunteer stays is inside the Old City so I went through the Suq instead to get there.  https://www.timesofisrael.com/jerusalem-police-kill-palestinian-attempting-yom-kippur-stabbing-attack/

Then there were scuffles in the Al Aqsa compound as muslims provoked jewish visitors to the site where once the Temple stood. We can expect more trouble the next 2 weeks when more jews will try to enter the compound and destroy the mosque so their messiah will come. So our peace is now broken. More police checkpoints and blocks.  https://www.timesofisrael.com/five-arrested-as-police-scuffle-with-muslim-activists-on-temple-mount/

Fried rice and chicken today

Today I brought the MC sisters to Bethlehem to visit the basilica and the Milk Grotto. But then I received news that because of Yom Kippur the border will be closed at noon. It was a great hurry to see everything and visit the MC convent in Bethlehem and have lunch there before rushing to return to Israel before the border closed. One thing though ... the simple food the sisters eat are very delicious. In Bethlehem they cooked fried rice with chicken. Yesterday lunch at the MC convent in nablus was rice with beef curry. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Beef curry and rice yesterday

We spent the rest of the afternoon at the Capuchin friary in the Talbiye neighbourhood. The sisters returned home just before the stabbing took place at Damascus Gate near their home. They still have 3 more days of visits before they start their retreat on Saturday. Because of Yom Kippur, tour buses refuse to run fearing ultra-orthodox jews throwing stones ... so tomorrow we'll have to walk and visit churches in and around Jerusalem ... walking distances. I am very exhausted and need to re-energise for the next day. It's extreme.