The Isræli-Palestinian conflict spans generations. The hate is so deep-seeded; it has become a part of both cultures. “The Inner Tour” takes viewers on a journey with a group of vacationing Palestinians who visit Isræl – some for the first time, others revisiting a place they once called home. This tour of Isræl’s museums and monuments opens old wounds among this cross section of Palestinians. With pained expressions they observe how their culture has been subjugated, their cities renamed and history subverted to favor the victor. In fact, there are two parallel histories, but only the victor gets to tell the tale.
Utilizing a documentary film crew of both Jews and Palestinians, we see the toll this war has taken on the Palestinian people. A young man who has not seen his family in eight years weeps as he visits his mother through a fence at the Lebanese border. They exchange letters by throwing them over the fence. An aging Palestinian man prays at the grave of his father while cultivating vegetables he once ate in his youth. The sweet taste brings back the memories, which only brings on more grief. Another man asks a taxi driver to take him to the site of Itzhak Rabin’s assassination so he may pay his respects.
In America, we have only been witness to fleeting stories on the news, devoid of any depth. The battle over this region has only consisted of images of hidden gunfire, rock throwing, suicide bombers and funerals. This view of the Isræli-Palestinian conflict explores the personal price paid. These are the human stories behind the headlines. The pain of these tourists reveals what the evening news glosses over. An engaging, enlightening and painful journey that sheds light on a crisis in need of further exploration and, more importantly, resolution.
