If you are feeling sad and overwhelmed this week, I want you to know you aren’t alone.
If the past 599 days (if you read this on Oct 15th) of a war at Europe’s border or the never ending saga of violence in hot spots like Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan and others weren’t enough of a test of being an empathetic human - a new front has opened old wounds over the past week.
Since the Ukraine war started, we’ve all done our best to find empathy in our hearts as our own economies stumble and struggle. We face rising nationalism and fundamentalism in our own governments and streets. But this past week has been a culmination of all that we could imagine as a worst-case scenario for making a case for Hope - That word, that feeling that keeps us moving forward as human beings.
I’m not going to bombard you with the anguished news out of Israel, or the despairing headlines from Gaza. You have enough of that coming your way from every direction. I’m not going to tell you the Israel-Palestine conflict is historical, or complicated, or pontificate about the cycle of violence. You already know that. And if you don’t, that’s ok too. I’m going to link a few books below in case you are interested in reading more about it.
I am neither Jewish, nor a Palestinian or Arab or Muslim. I do not have the lived experience of what my friends, my acquaintances, my contacts are going through - an overwhelming sense of grief and fear. Fear for their families in the region, fear of anti semitic and islamophobic attacks wherever they live, fear for what their children’s future may be. Nothing I say or do could possibly help alleviate that.
What I do believe is that our global collective conscience knows the difference between right and wrong. We know words have the power to change perceptions and discourse. And despite our emotions running high, I choose to believe at heart we are a kind, compassionate and generous species.
For us to remain that way - we must cling to hope for dear life. Because hope, allows us to believe tomorrow, the next year, the future will let our children leave the pain of today where it belongs, in the past.
This weekend, instead of the news and newsmakers flooding your home and mind with their facts and opinions - I want us to really pay attention to the women who are the guardians of hope in the region. Their voices have been completely missing in this ‘new’ crisis. But then again, they were missing when the Oslo Peace Accords were signed, some 30 years ago too.
I’ve always found it fascinating that when it comes to peace making around the world, there’s barely a presence of women on the negotiating table, as mediators, or as signatories.When they are included, it isn’t in any impactful number. In Afghanistan women were 10% of negotiators, in Libya 20% and in Yemen - none. In fact, 7 out of 10 peace processes don’t have any women involved. We have to ask ourselves, why?
“Women’s participation in conflict prevention and resolution can improve outcomes before, during, and after conflict. For example, women’s participation increases the probability of a peace agreement lasting at least two years by 20 percent and a peace agreement lasting fifteen years by 35 percent.” - Council on Foreign Relations
You can read more about the reasons why women’s participation is so key in this International Peace Institute report.
Even when women are included, The Elders (An organisation founded by Nelson Mandela - an independent group of global leaders working for peace, justice, human rights and a sustainable planet) leave us with a warning - to not carry our biases into any particular situation:
“Context matters. Every mediator and every mediation process need to be designed to suit the specific situation and societies they are dealing with. But we note that female mediators and activists from the Arab world have told us that at times UN officials have been too prone to jump to conclusions that Arab countries are patriarchal and conservative, without recognising the political roles women already play, and that “national patriarchy is massaged by patriarchy on the part of the UN”.
When it comes to the seemingly never-ending cycle of intergenerational trauma in Israel and Palestine, perhaps now is the time to listen to women in the region, keeping that context in mind. Because as Daniel Nerenberg wrote in the Washington Post back in 2018, “What do peace processes without women’s participation produce? Less peace.”
Let me introduce you to the women whose voices can influence more peace.
Naomi Chazan
Naomi Chazan is the former deputy speaker of the Israeli Knesset and the author of multiple books exploring the Israeli-Arab conflict, politics in Israel, and the status of women. She has been a vocal proponent of human rights, women’s rights and is considered one of the foremost voices of reason in the region. Prof. Chazan is professor (emerita) of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and currently serves as a senior research fellow at the Truman Research Institute at the Hebrew University and the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute.
Prof. Chazan was one of the founders of the Israel Women’s Network and is also active in a variety of women’s, human rights, and peace organizations. She served as the President of the New Israel Fund (2009–2012) and is a member of its international board. Earlier this year, speaking about the current Israeli government she had warned the world, “I think Israel is in the process of implosion.”
Vera Baboun
Vera Baboun has broken many barriers in her lifetime, especially considering Palestinian leadership and officials are overwhelmingly male. Currently the Palestinian Ambassador to Chile, the mother of 5 is also a member of the Palestinian National Council. Vera made global headlines almost a decade ago when she was elected as the first Woman Mayor of the City of Bethlehem in 2012, till the end of her term in 2017. Her win on a Fatah ticket made her the first female and Christian Mayor if Bethlehem in 144 years.
One of the key challenges she attempted to tackle was igniting hope by creating jobs and lifting citizens out of economic despair, despite more than 80% of the Bethlehem being controlled by Israel.
As we still keep women out of the decision-making rooms, listen to Vera’s views on The Quest of Palestinian Women in Leadership. I hope it resonates.
Dr. Yael Braudo-Bahat
Dr. Yael Braudo-Bahat is one of the 2 Co-Directors of Women Wage Peace (WWP). She has worked on forging relations with organizations, donors, and supporters in Israel and abroad, supervising WWP activity on social networks, and more. Dr. Braudo-Bahat obtained a Ph.D. in Law from Tel Aviv University, where she also served as a lecturer, research assistant, and Associate Editor of the international legal journal Theoretical Inquiries in Law.
Women Wage Peace (WWP) has grown to 45,000 Israeli members, the largest grassroots peace movement in Israel today. A non-partisan movement, its members collect every Monday in front of the Israeli government building dressed in white and blue to demand a peaceful solution to the conflict.
In the organisation’s own words: “WWP enables women to unite and take the future of this small place into our own hands –from the political left, center and right, younger and older women, those from the center of the country and its periphery, religious and secular, Jewish, Arab, Druze and Bedouin.”
Vivian Silver
Vivian Silver is one of WWP’s founding members. A prominent Israeli Canadian peace activist, she has for years transported injured and sick people in Gaza to hospitals and worked toward finding peace in various international organisations. Vivian was kidnapped from her home during the Hamas attacks last week. Per WWP, since October 7th 11:07 (Israel time) it is assumed, she is a hostage in Gaza as nothing has been heard from/off her since. Read the WWP plea to her kidnappers.
Reem Al-Hajajreh
Reem Al-Hajajreh is the founder of Women of the Sun, a grass roots Palestinian women’s peace advocacy group that works closely with WWP with the goal of breathing new life into a dormant peace process. In Reem’s own words: “We no longer take the back seat and are determined to act persistently to end the cycle of bloodshed and to achieve freedom and a just, honourable life for Palestinian and Israeli children.”
Women of the Sun encompasses all sects and segments inside and outside the Palestinian society, including women, youth, and children. The organisation seeks to represent not only those in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip but also the Palestinian Diaspora. The goal? For women to bring about change in society that achieves community peace. The task isn’t an easy one as the organisation points out. Their partnership with WWP isn’t looked on favourably by Hamas and other conservatives amongst Palestinians, neither is their visibility considered socially acceptable.
Layla Al Sheikh & Robi Damelin
Layla Al Sheikh is not just a co-director at Women of the Sun but has been a core part of the Parents Circle Families Forum, a grassroots organization of bereaved Palestinians and Israelis. The circle seeks to bring about reconciliation, dialogue and, above all, peace. In 2002, Layla’s 6-month-old son died after Israeli soldiers fired tear gas, leaving her son in critical condition. He died later that day. In 2018 Layla was convinced to attend a gathering of the Parents Circle and began a journey to be the voice of parents like herself - touched by the collective sense of pain and unity among Israeli and Palestinian members of the circle who were just like her — caught in the crossfire of politics.
Robi Damelin is a spokesperson and director of international relations at the Parents Circle Families Forum. Originally from South Africa, Damelin emigrated to Israel in 1967 and ran a public relations company in Tel Aviv. Her son was also killed in 2002 by a Palestinian sniper along with 9 others. Robi then joined the Parents Circle. Robi is a vocal voice in the push for reconciliation and peace. She was named a 2015 Woman of Impact by Women in the World and in 2014 she was selected by the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice as one of four Women PeaceMakers.
The Parents Circle – Families Forum (PCFF) is a joint Israeli-Palestinian organization of over 600 families, all of whom have lost an immediate family member to the ongoing conflict. Moreover, the PCFF has concluded that the process of reconciliation between nations is a prerequisite to achieving a sustainable peace. The organization uses education, public meetings and the media, to spread these ideas.
Sally Abed and Dina Kraft
Sally Abed is a Palestinian activist in Israel. Sally is a member of the national leadership of Standing Together – the largest Jewish Arab grassroots movement in Israel. She has become a prominent Palestinian voice in Israel, advocating progressive causes for social and climate justice, and highlighting their connection to the struggle for peace and an end to the occupation through building a new majority in Israeli society.
Dina Kraft is an award-winning journalist based in Tel Aviv. She is the Opinion Editor for Haaretz English, and co-author of My Friend Anne Frank. Dina has written from the region for over two decades for The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor and The Los Angeles Times, reporting on Israeli and Palestinian politics, culture and society.
Together, Sally and Dina host a podcast called Groundwork, which is created and produced by Dina and her colleague Yoshi Fields. If you are a podcast fan, I strongly recommend putting Groundwork in your cue to really understand the change that is building on the ground, far from the enclaves of politics. Caveat: Groundwork is co-sponsored by the New Israel Fund and the Alliance for Middle East Peace (ALLMEP).
Groundwork can be found wherever you get your podcasts, or HERE.
Reading Corner on the Israel-Palestine conflict
There are so many options for books to read to understand a conflict. My personal preference is to pick authors from each perspective of a long running dispute. It tends to paint a more inclusive picture.
In the case of Israel and Palestine the choice of books is too vast to narrow down to any selection that can be called the best of the lot. Instead I’ve listed some of the books that have helped me understand the conflict better over the years.
I hope it is helpful!
I Saw Ramallah by Mourid Barghouti
Six Days of War by Michael B. Oren
Salt Houses by Hala Alyan
Stories Under Occupation edited by Samer al-Saber and Gary M. English
Ally by Michael B. Oren
A Line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle That Shaped the Middle East by James Barr