Page 34 - October 7 - Teresa Pirola

narratives emanating from settlements to falafel vendors, from war memorials to cultural icons. He acknowledges the benefits of being an Arab Muslim citizen of Israel, yet also harbours a painful ancestral story of dispossession in the 1948 war.
Here, amidst all the complexities, most people get on with their lives. Palestinians from the West Bank might queue for hours to get through a checkpoint on their way to work in Israel. Meanwhile Israeli children near the Gaza border sleep in bomb shelters. Palestinian parents fear for their children’s safety amidst Israeli military presence in the West Bank. Meanwhile Israeli parents fear that their teenage children will be those Israeli soldiers assigned to duty in the West Bank. No one wants this occupation. It is bad for Palestinians. It is bad for Israelis. Yet how to end it justly and safely for both parties is far from clear.
Still, there are signs that political impasse and bloodshed may not have the last word. The NGO EcoPeace has Israelis and Palestinians lobbying the governments of Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority to better manage scarce water resources. Project Rozana and Road to Recovery have Israelis and Palestinians working together for improved health outcomes for Palestinian communities. The Aguda is a Tel Aviv LGBT organisation that includes outreach to Palestinian gay people in the West Bank.
Combatants for Peace harnesses the energies of those on both sides who have engaged in armed struggle for educational targets. The Parents Circle brings together Israeli and Palestinian families who have each lost a child, killed by the ‘other side’. Their personal stories convey a strong message: if we can reconcile, surely governments can too.
Meanwhile, other cooperative initiatives focus on economic development. The Palestinian Internship Program supports
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