This is for them:-
...for a small group of leading British tourism experts on a fact-finding mission in the West Bank led by the UK Trade & Investment ministry, a state that does not officially exist is also one that brims with secret promise.
The West Bank boasts a surprising number of scenic spots like the dramatic, undulating desert hills of the Wadi Qelt.
Intrepid tourists who venture here might not spot an elephant, but they are almost certain to catch a glimpse of its closest biological relative, the hyrax.
...Stretching down towards Jericho, the rolling hills where Jesus is believed to have wandered for forty days afford a hostile but spectacular vista of desert interspersed with oases of palm and ziziphus trees. The ruins of a Roman aqueduct lay nearby, while a monastery atop the Mount of Temptation was visible in the distance.
Britons who come here could trek the valet, swim in oasis springs, according to Imad Atrash, head of the Palestinian Wildlife Society. Wadi Qelt is also an important roosting spot for migratory birds.
It is this potential that led to the British government, with the prime minister's backing, pledging to market the West Bank as a tourism destination.
Yet there were also reminders that the West Bank remains under Israeli military occupation. Jewish settlements nestled on top of two hills above the wadi, scarring the image of isolation, while a sudden burst of gunfire signalled the presence of nearby Israeli military range.
"The product needs to be developed if it is to be successful," said Paul Taylor of UK Trade & Investment, the leader of a mission that included a post-conflict tourism adviser and other British experts in tourism development. "There is an image problem that needs to be addressed."
Mr Taylor insisted that trip to the West Bank would be no holiday from hell, pointing out that the security situation has improved.
Indeed, the Foreign Office no longer warns against travel to the West Bank although it does cautions tourists that "the situation remains fragile and could deteriorate at short notice".
...Even so, the mission seemed convinced that West Bank tourism remains a viable project.
"I'm really enthused by it," said Alison Cryer, chairman of the Tourism Industry which represents over 1,000 British tourism professionals. "I can't see anything but potential."
Well, gentlemen and ladies, I can put you in touch with tourist itineraries and routes which stretch back 3,700 years to the present, the Biblical period, with Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Crusaders, Ottomans and, of course, the country's most dominant presence - the Jews, all in Judea and Samaria.
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