Working for Peace in Wartime
As we experience the fallout from the heinous massacre in the South of the country and watch the looming humanitarian crisis and deaths in Gaza, we reconfirm our belief that only true peace, equality and basic human rights for all can ensure our continued existence in this region.
Dr. Ariela Bairey-Ben Ishay, Chairwoman of the Association of Educational Institutions said: “The brutality that was experienced by all who were exposed to the Hamas attack, both Jews and Arabs, is traumatic and the revenge of Israel on Gaza is utterly devastating.”
In Wahat al-Salam – Neve Shalom, we continue to meet and discuss the situation. Dialogue and discussion are critical to us. As the world around us changes, we need to find our way back to human values, respect and openness to one another’s grief, fears and reactions. The discussions have started with uni-national groups, and it was felt that further uni-national meetings will be needed before binational discussions can take place.
The psychologists and social workers – those who are dealing with the mental health needs of children and adults here in the village and outside of it – organized a healing session in the Spiritual Center to work on supporting others during the crisis, especially children.
A number of village Muslims met to pray in the Spiritual Center for those in the line of fire and for peace.
The schools have been closed since the beginning of the war, but our primary school staff are not sitting quietly by. Neama, the school principal, is organizing mindfulness lessons online, and she has reached out to children and families who need encouragement and assistance. The schools are meant to reopen gradually, and online classes have been organized. We are trying to get the first and second graders back to the classrooms, as it is more crucial for these children to be with one another and interact on a personal level.
The School for Peace staff have been working non-stop. “The new situation requires rethinking all of our plans and groups, all of whom are trapped within this process,” said SFP director Dr. Roi Silberberg. They are reaching out to their network of alumni, offering assistance to those in need and asking others in the network to lend a helping hand or ear.
A course they have been planning for some time had its first session on Sunday. This is an online dialogue course between Jewish Israelis and Palestinians living in Europe. Sixteen participants joined from the Netherlands, Britain, Germany, Switzerland and Spain.
One in-person course has been put off for two weeks – the Change Agents in Mixed Cities course that was meant to have it opening session last Friday and Saturday. But another course, the Climate and Environmental Activists Change Agents’ course, which was already in the middle, held a session by Zoom. The Planners Forum held a Zoom meeting, as well, and SFP staff has invited other to follow suit. The staff has also been working in consulting positions with organizations like hospitals and educational faculty that have binational staffs.
When these immediate crises and days of fighting are over, we’ll remain together committed to our shared path
Eldad Joffe, the new Chairman of the Municipal Society, started his term dealing with this terrible crisis, and with a new municipal board. In his talks with village members, he reminded us that during wartime, Wahat al-Salam – Neve Shalom is our home and our place to share with our families, and with our Jewish and Arab neighbors. The great pain and shock that has hit Israeli society after the attacks in the South has left many of our members in crisis as they lost friends and loved ones. The Palestinians and Jews who believe in peace know the situation in Gaza and around is insufferable and we mourn the thousands who have lost their lives or homes, and we see the situation worsen from day to day.
But as a community, it is important to preserve our values, and at the same time to increase the village security. Some forty village members, men and women, have volunteered for sentry duty.
“It is our duty in these trying times,” he says, “to remember that when these immediate crises and days of fighting are over, we’ll remain together committed to our shared path.”
Ariela Bairey-Ben Ishay has been working with Association staff to help them function during this difficult time. The Association Board has been offering emotional support to heads of institutions and staff, and to parents, to help us all get through the anxiety, fear, grief and pain. “It is not clear how we will all heal from these senseless brutal actions,” she says, adding that his was a rude awakening telling us we must work harder still to strengthen the bonds between Palestinians and Jews. Our community and its educational institutions are ever more convinced that we must continue the work and find ways to increase our impact.
The foreign press has expressed interest in the village and its message, and Samah Salaime, head of Communications and Development has organized a communications group – Nava Sonnenschein, Eldad Joffe, Roi Silberberg, Shireen Najjar and Ariela Bairey-Ben Ishay – and they have been interviewed by Swedish, Italian, German and Swiss media.
Samah has also written about her fears for Jewish and Palestinian friends alike, and Isabela Dos Santos, a Canadian former intern, was interviewed on Canadian TV. You can read and see them here:
And you can read Judy’s blog posts about the situation here: