Is reconciliation still possible in Israel-Palestine and what should it look like?
The level of violence unfolding in Israel and Palestine means that, for many, the thought of a peaceful solution is a distant, if not impossible, aim. But for our partner Musalaha, giving up on reconciliation is just not an option.
Graffiti on the Separation Barrier in the West Bank.
Daniel Munayer, Executive Director, and Wasim Nasser, Programs Manager at Musalaha, explains:
For the past year, we at Musalaha have been actively imagining and exploring the concept of nonviolent co-resistance. Unlike the popular notion of coexistence, nonviolent co-resistance insists the reality of inequalities and inequity between two groups cannot be obscured, overlooked, or bypassed in the authentic pursuit of reconciliation and justice.
This concept asks us to consider how we, together as Palestinians and Israelis, can co-resist violent attitudes such as anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, interpersonal and group violence seen in our neighborhoods and streets, and structural violence such as the Occupation.
Structural violence can often be referred to as “invisible violence” since structures can be intangible; how does one convey the violence of shutting off water, food, electricity, medicine, and fuel for an entire population overnight? While violence exists on both sides, the disproportionate imbalance of power is clear.
As we imagine a path to peace and the road of reconciliation that leads to it, interpersonal engagements are needed, but can only be so effective while systems and structures of power privilege one group of people at the expense of the other.
Is it reasonable to expect an occupied people – the Palestinians – to be reconciled with Israelis only through friendship while ignoring their daily unjust suffering? Is it also reasonable to expect Israelis, participating in the occupying power structures, to sacrifice their power and privilege out of moral conviction?
Palestinians and Israelis still need to meet and develop relationships, yet the substance and goals of these meetings need to be based on the mutual understanding of the discriminatory imbalance of power damaging our ability to reconcile. Programs ending with acceptance of the normalized reality of Israelis returning to their Tel Aviv beach apartments while Palestinians return through checkpoints to refugee camps inside the West Bank can only distort the purpose of reconciliation, making the words “peace” and “coexistence” dirty. If our activities fail to address these disparities, our meetings become irrelevant and cease to provide a viable future within this ongoing cycle of violence.
Since October 7th, we have heard two recurring questions regarding our work at Musalaha. The first question asks if there is still any point for reconciliation after all this? But this question is rooted in apathy, uttered by the lips of the privileged. We are not observers spectating these unfolding atrocities; we all know people who have been killed, injured, and displaced over the years.
Giving up on reconciliation abandons my dignity and humanity at a time when political and religious leaders are pushing us down the path of hatred and destruction.
The second question has to do with what reconciliation looks like after this? This is a legitimate question rooted in sceptical hope and confusion.
We are suggesting nonviolent co-resistance within our reconciliation framework as a way forward. As our programs move ahead, we are inviting participants to consider what this practice can look like as part of the reconciliation process. For now, we are imagining the nurturing of small grassroots groups who are willing to stand side-by-side, co-advocating for each other's humanity, and building key strategic alliances with peace and human rights actors across the divide.
Giving up on hope and submitting to wickedness was never an option, who among us has the audacity to tell our children the future has no hope?
MUSALAHA’S WORK: CREATING SAFE SPACES
Cards made by Jewish and Arab Israeli citizens to send to Palestinian women in the West Bank.
Hedva Haymov, Project Manager at Musalaha, tells us how they have helped Israeli and Palestinian women support each other since the 7th October attack:
In times of war and violent outbreaks, it’s important to find safe spaces to digest the shock and process the heaviness. A “safe space” can be a trustworthy person, a peaceful location, or a particular mindset, such as prayer.
This month, the Israeli and Palestinian women could not meet because of the separation the war has imposed in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and Israel. Instead of leaving each other alone to deal with all the death and loss, we decided to meet with whomever we could.
We invited all the Israelis and the Palestinians who live in Israel to meet for a few hours last week. Each one brought with them the heaviness and pain they were carrying, and we shared it all together.
It was a time to be a safe space for each other. It was helpful – and we made cards to send our love and prayers to the women inside the West Bank. Through tears, one woman spoke about the soldiers she knew who died, mentioning also how she provided some income to West Bank farmers by buying vegetables in bulk.
Another woman said how she wished she could hit the reset button on all humanity, for all the horrible things we’ve done to each other. Another cried and cried, for all those who have died since October 7th.
