Rubaks, a local ice cream shop, has closed. The local athletic field is still occupied by a blue tent, set up last fall for a one-ring circus, but the circus left town when the intifada started. Today, the tent's ripped remains flap in the wind. On many days after school, Fuad's buddies head for the closest Israeli army checkpoint and throw stones at the soldiers. But the stone-throwing is also part Russian roulette.
Some boys die.
The boy who used to live across the street was shot to death while throwing rocks at soldiers last year. Throughout the West Bank, more than 430 people have been killed since the outbreak of violence in September, including about 350 Palestinians, almost 60 Israelis, and about 20 others. The fatalities include more than 60 Palestinian children, many of them boys who were throwing rocks at soldiers. Four months ago, an Israeli bullet found Fuad. Luckily the bullet was the rubber-coated version, which the Israeli army uses along with tear gas to disperse Palestinian demonstrators.