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In Pictures: Palestine Marathon

More than 3,000 runners from 39 countries ran in the second annual ‘Right to Movement’ marathon in Bethlehem.

Rawan Bannoura is a 26-year-old from the West Bank town of Beit Sahour, east of Bethlehem. She ran the 10km race at the second annual Palestine Marathon.
By Silvia Boarini
Published On 13 Apr 2014

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More than 3,000 runners from 39 nations ran through the streets of Bethlehem and its surrounding villages in the second annual Palestine Marathon this weekend. Participants in the “Right to Movement” events completed 10km, half-marathon and full-marathon races on Friday.

The event is the brainchild of Danish activists Lise Ring and Signe Fischer. “The idea to organise a marathon in Palestine came to me one day as I was waiting in a checkpoint. I [had] just moved here from Denmark, and Palestinians’ inability to move was what struck me the most,” Fischer said in a press release.

The loss of Palestinian land to Israeli settlements and settlement infrastructure in the occupied West Bank makes it impossible to find a continuous, 42km stretch – the distance of a full marathon. For this reason, marathon runners ran a 21km course twice.

The right to movement is enshrined in Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA), Palestinian freedom of movement is severely curtailed by the Israeli authorities.

The Israeli separation wall and its 81 gates separate farmers from their land, children from their schools, and even individual homes from villages. Palestinian movement is further restricted by a series of 59 permanent Israeli checkpoints, and an average of 243 spontaneous checkpoints set up each month in the West Bank, UN-OCHA found.

The Israeli authorities have also restricted Palestinian travel between the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Over 500,000 Palestinians entered Israel from Gaza through the Erez border crossing in 2004, compared to only 69,070 in 2013.

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The latest victim of this regime of restrictions was Palestinian Olympian Nader Masri, who was prevented from travelling from Gaza to the West Bank to take part in the marathon.

"We are not just running, we are also advocating for a cause. The marathon helps make the political, personal," Bannoura says. "Many foreigners will run and will relate to our situation. When they go back to their countries hopefully they will tell other people what it is like here."
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Bannoura took pictures of her friend Leila, and sister Dana (right) before the race. Several running groups formed in the main West Bank cities ahead of the marathon.
The marathon(***)s start and finish line was set up in front of Manger Square in Bethlehem. "Today is a special day, we are happy," Bannoura says.
Runners took various routes during the race. It was impossible for organisers to find a marathon-length route that was uninterrupted and under full Palestinian control.
The runners warmed up before the race. In May, Bannoura will be part of a group travelling to Copenhagen to run a marathon there and give lectures about Palestine.
The marathon route took runners along the Israeli separation wall and its many watchtowers. Security during the race was set up by the Palestinian police force.
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At the end of the 10km race, Bannoura shared impressions with friends. "It was hard, but I hope to run the half-marathon next year," she says.
Bannoura went back along the race route to encourage other runners. Attendance was sparse during this year(***)s event, as running is not a common sport in Palestine.
She met her sister, Dana, who ran the half-marathon, at the finish line. "I hope to be able to run in Europe next year where the borders are open and there(***)s no wall to stop you," Dana says.
Medals handed out to all the participants were carved from olive wood, a cultural tradition Bethlehem is known for. "I will keep running, yes," Bannoura says. "This is not just running. I want to show people that this is my right, my right to movement."