By Monalisa Idahosa
Bereaved families navigate the divide between Israelis and Palestinians. Monday October 7th, commemorates the first anniversary of the unexpected Hamas terrorist assault that resulted in the deaths of 1,200 Israelis and initiated the Israel Defense Force’s military operation in Gaza, which has claimed the lives of approximately 42,000 Palestinians, predominantly civilians, and further escalated a regional conflict with Lebanon that continues to take on a dangerous form.
Amid the ominous shadows of war spreading throughout the region, it is challenging to discover any opportunities for dialogue where individuals are willing to reach out across the divide and discuss peace.However, there are minor initiatives that deserve recognition and can showcase acts of bravery. One such initiative is The Parents Circle – Families Forum, an Israeli-Palestinian collaboration that unites 700 families who have suffered the loss of their children due to years of conflict. They opt for a discourse of reconciliation instead of a cycle of vengeance through what they refer to as “listening from the heart.”
some weeks ago Charles M. Sennott had the opportunity to get back together with the Parents Circle and lead a conversation with two moms, one Israeli and one Palestinian, who lost their kids during the height of the second intifada, or Palestinian uprising, in 2002. It was a full circle moment. In collaboration with the GBH Forum Network, the American Friends of the Parents Circle sponsored the event at Suffolk University’s Ford Hall. One glimmer of hope at a time when it seems like the gloom is closing in is provided by the necessity for these two grieving mothers to share their tales, their civil conversation, and their readiness to listen.
Layla Al-Sheikh, a Palestinian mother of five from the West Bank’s Bethlehem, a biblical town, sat on stage with Charles M. Sennott. When Israeli forces used tear gas on her six-month-old son, Qussay, it had a devastating effect on his lungs. Her baby died because he did not receive timely treatment after she was stopped for over five hours at a checkpoint while attempting to rush him to the hospital.
Robi Damelin, an Israeli mother who lost her 24-year-old son David, was seated next her on stage. He was slain by a Palestinian sniper while serving his mandated Israeli military duty as a member of the peace movement. Damelin, who is currently the Parents’ Circle’s director of international affairs, shifted the conversation to the 250 Israelis who were taken captive during the October 7th Hamas attack and the 100 who remain in captivity. It appears that talks to release Palestinian detainees in return for the release of Israeli captives have broken down. Damelin maintained that if negotiating the release of her son’s killer would allow an Israeli hostage to return home, she would support the talks.
Regarding her son’s killer, she said, “I think they should free him if that will bring one hostage back,” which struck a deeper chord because the October 7th anniversary falls right in the middle of the Jewish High Holy Days, which are customarily a time of introspection, atonement, and a reaffirmation of faith. Because, in my opinion, the value of human life is far more than the man incarcerated.
