Voices from exile: ‘Do you know the Palestinian map? See, it is in my veins’

In May, I visited Jordan to meet family friends and see the elaborate rock-cut tombs of Petra. Soon after Israel’s war on Gaza began in 2023, Jordan’s capital of Amman had grown desolate, with tourism only sputtering back to life nearly two years later.

Over the month I spent in Jordan, I received an education on West Asia. Jordan is geographically close to many of the countries I had only read about in the news: Israel, Palestine, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon. I skirted around these countries for weeks, as I visited different parts of Jordan to look at historical sites.

I saw Jerusalem’s skyscrapers and parts of Palestine from across the Dead Sea, parts of Israel from across the Jordan Valley and from northern Jordan there was a glimpse of the Golan Heights.

Over several decades, waves of Palestinians have been forced out of their homes to take refuge in neighbouring countries. Many fled to the East Bank of the Jordan River to Jordan, making their homes and lives there.

Today, roughly 60%-70% of the Jordanian population is of Palestinian origin. They live hyphenated lives. Some hold Palestinian ID cards but Jordanian passports. They take comfort in childhood songs, food and nostalgia.

Even though life seemed calm in Jordan, for...

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