Dear Friend,
This week, we met as a team for the first time since this war began. It was an intense morning, marked by the sound of thunder, air raid sirens, and the booms of missile interceptions overhead. One by one, we all made our way to Beit Jala in Area C in the Occupied West Bank. Israelis and Palestinians, arriving from different realities, carrying different fears, but deciding that we needed to connect.
Around our meeting table, we spoke about our week - about trying to balance war with ordinary life, with children, with work, with everything that doesn’t suddenly stop because of war. We spoke about how different our experiences are depending on where we live, and what we each carry with us into the room. Some of us run to shelters when alarms sound, knowing there is at least some protection. Others have nowhere to go - no shelters, no reliable warning systems, only the uncertainty of where the next strike or falling debris might land. We all understand the place that we live in, and this is not normal.
We shared lunch together - maqluba, a traditional Arabic rice dish turned upside down before serving - and sang happy birthday in three languages to a colleague who couldn’t join us. This is our normal! Palestinians and Israelis - colleagues, friends, allies - not defined only by this conflict, and not willing to accept that occupation, oppression and fear are all we can hope for.
This is why, on April 20th, we will hold the Israeli–Palestinian Joint Memorial Ceremony co-organized by the Parents Circle – Families Forum.
At a time when everything is pulling us further apart, this ceremony creates a space where something else is still possible - where grief is shared, not used, and where a different political future can begin to take shape.
We are living proof that the Day After is possible, but we cannot build it alone. Register to join the ceremony from wherever you are, and if you can - please support us to become a part of our joint community of peace makers.
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