Jerusalem ulpan creating bonds between Jews and Muslims
JERUSALEM (JTA) -- As an Arab living in eastern Jerusalem, Mohamad Neiroukh simply wants to learn Hebrew.
That’s why he is enrolled in an ulpan, an intensive Hebrew language program that has been a rite of passage for Jewish immigrants since the state’s founding.
“I needed to learn Hebrew. Everyone speaks Hebrew,” the 22-year-old college graduate said during a class break at Milah, as he stood with several other Arabs and Jews on a second-floor balcony overlooking a trash-filled alley off the city’s Ben Yehuda Street.
Milah, which means “word” in Hebrew, differs greatly from the ulpans -- which today number more than 90 -- that have educated millions of new immigrants and visiting Jewish students from abroad.
Founded in 1994 with funds from the Morrison family of Birmingham, Ala., Milah enrolls about 500 students a year. Since 2000, the number of Muslims has soared from 5 percent to 50 percent today.
http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/06/11/3097886/jerusalem-ulpan-creates-bonds-between-jews-muslims
