Two women from either side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict spoke at the LSE last Thursday as part of the Parents’ Circle Bereaved Families Forum. The event was hosted by Hannah Geis, the LSE Students’ Union International Officer, the LSE Students’ Union Israel Society and the King’s College London Israeli Palestinian Forum. The speakers told their stories of loss and renewed hope for the future, which brought together people who had lost family members to discuss their situations and the projects they have undertaken to bring about empathy across the entire region.
The event began with a short film produced by Saatchi & Saatchi, entitled “Blood Relations,” in which one of the speakers, Seham Abu Awwad, was featured giving blood and telling her story. The film covered a project set up by the Parents’ Circle and Saatchi & Saatchi, in which Israelis and Palestinians donate blood which is then given to patients on opposite sides of the border. Many of those present in the room had also taken part in the project, as a blood donation session had taken place earlier in the day in London, and so the screening proved an emotional experience for some.
After a brief introduction by Aimee Riese, president of the Israel Society, and Professor Jim Hughes of the Government Department, Robi Damelin and Awwad told the room of their background and motivation for involvement in Blood Relations and the Parents’ Circle. Damelin’s son, David, was killed by a Palestinian sniper while guarding a checkpoint on Israeli Army reserve service. A Masters student at Tel Aviv University, he had expressed objection to war generally but undertook service regardless as he felt it was a duty to demonstrate respect to fellow Israeli soldiers. In 2000, one of Awwad’s brothers was killed by an Israeli Defence Force soldier and another was critically shot in the leg, which led to a radical change of perspective for Awwad’s mother who, along with Ms. Awwad herself, joined the Parents’ Circle.
They both described initial anxieties and apprehensions about the group and how over time they began to overcome attitudes that had been ingrained in them from birth. They have since met many others in the same situation, as the Parents’ Circle now stands at over 500 members and Awwad is the Women’s Committee Chair. In addition to Blood Relations, the organisation holds regular meetings in both Israel and Palestine, with what Ms. Damelin described as a “fair amount” of permits for Palestinians to travel into Israel, since the Parents’ Circle is not affiliated to any political party. Alongside working directly between members, the group holds talks and seminars in Israeli and Palestinian schools and with youth summer camps that emphasise cultural interaction. Damelin highlighted the presence of an entire generation of Israelis and Palestinians who have been completely segregated from one another, as a key reason for hatred and the fact that group seeks to bring about empathy on the most basic level.
The event had been criticised for promoting “normalisation” on its Facebook page, as some activists feel that the work of the Parents’ Circle accepts the political status quo. Awwad responded particularly strongly to this criticism, arguing that the organisation rather points out everything that is not normal about the status quo, on a human rather than a political level. The Palestine Society did not return comment on the event.
Aimee Riese said: “The Parents’ Circle not only show the essence of the conflict, humans and human suffering, but also offer hope for reconciliation and peace – something we hope activists on all sides of the conflict are working towards.” “The emotional messages by the speakers allow us to think carefully about how we ‘export’ the conflict outside of the conflict zone and how to connect with the real people involved,” added Riese.
The conclusion of the evening focused on the situation at the LSE, as both speakers warned against both sides “importing” the conflict without empathising with one another and expressed an interest in creating a future event at the School with representation from both the Israel and Palestine Societies.
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