UK Ministers Endorse Israeli-Palestinian Peacebuilding & A Spotlight on Women Grassroots Leaders

 

To kick off this year’s engagements in the UK, Israeli and Palestinian members of ALLMEP participated in a series of impactful sessions at the Jewish Labour Movement’s Annual Conference on Sunday, January 12, 2025. The goal was clear: to spotlight the transformative work of civil society-led peacebuilding and to urge ministers and supporters to prioritize these efforts in government policy.

Key government ministers from the Foreign Office, including Hamish Falconer, the UK’s Middle East Minister, and Anneliese Dodds, the Development and Women & Equalities Minister, attended the conference. Both leaders reiterated their strong support for the Prime Minister’s pledge, calling out ALLMEP for our work to ensure that civil society-led peacebuilding is part of a sustainable diplomatic resolution to the conflict.  

 

 

The endorsement and support of these high-level ministers, coupled with the testimonies and advocacy of Israeli and Palestinian peacebuilders during the multiple panels, underscores the UK’s growing commitment to supporting grassroots initiatives as an essential component of its foreign policy.

 

Key FCDO Ministerial Endorsements

Anneliese Dodds

 

Anneliese Dodds, the Development and Women & Equalities Minister, expressed her enthusiasm for the Prime Minister’s endorsement of the International Fund, and highlighted ALLMEP’s critical role in getting a policy shift at the G7 leaders’ summit and UNGA last year. She underscored the importance of building institutions that bring people together, rather than pushing them apart. And Looking ahead, she re-stated that FS David Lammy would host a roundtable with civil society actors to advance the International Fund.

The Minister also spoke about the importance of ensuring women’s voices are included in this process, aligning with the 25th anniversary of UNSCR 1325, for which ALLMEP has developed the Women’s Leadership Network, a program to equip women grassroots leaders in Palestine and Israel with the tools to advocate for peace, influence international governments and enhance their participation in decision-making through collaboration and capacity building.

Dodds highlighted ALLMEP’s Northern Ireland comparisons, and noted the UK’s unique position to leverage its conflict resolution expertise from Northern Ireland’s peace process when thinking about long-term peace in Israel-Palestine.

 

Hamish Falconer

 

 

Hamish Falconer, the UK’s Middle East Minister, echoed the relevance of Northern Ireland’s peacebuilding experience. “The idea behind the International Fund, as I’m sure many know, not least ALLMEP colleagues in the audience, but the inspiration is the Irish Fund for Peace, which worked on both sides of the Northern Ireland conflict to try and build relationships between communities on either side of the divide in the Troubles” he stated. The minister continued: “as the Prime Minister set out, we think that there are lessons from the peacebuilding, civil society approach that was taken in Northern Ireland, which are relevant.”

Minister Falconer recognised that “there is so much uncertainty across both communities and so much rancor, understandably, given the scale of the conflict, that finding finding ways to create that space for people to start to think about how they might be able to show political flexibility in the direction of people they think of as their adversary is a really important thing for us to be doing, and we’re working hard in the foreign office to try and make sure we can meet the challenges” 

 

Supporting Grassroots Peacebuilders: A Panel Discussion

The International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace, and the essential need for sustainable funding was also raised during a panel chaired by Baroness Ruth Anderson on “Israel and Palestine: Supporting Grassroots Peacebuilders”. The panelists included Dr Nida Shoughry (from ALLMEP member Itach-Maaki), Nivine Sandouka (ALLMEP’s Regional Director), and Karen Ben Yehuda (an educator and tour guide working in collaboration with many ALLMEP members).  

 

 

Nivine spoke about the work that ALLMEP is doing, in the region and internationally, to ensure that civil society peacebuilding remains on the agenda for policy-makers. She also spoke about the importance of language, and the fact that, in Palestine in particular, it’s hard to speak about “peace” right now. Instead, the field is speaking about “peace needs” – which cover a range of economic and social priorities that the peace camp understands well and are working to address right now.  

Dr. Nida offered insights into feminist peacebuilding, advocating for inclusivity and the recognition of marginalized communities. She appealed to international audiences to amplify these grassroots voices: “We need you – internationally –  to echo our voices.”

 

 

Karen emphasized trauma-informed approaches to peacebuilding and called attention to the lack of media coverage on civil society initiatives. She also remarked how communities in the UK could learn a lot from Israelis and Palestinians, stating: “Israelis and Palestinians can be a model for how people in the UK can actually speak together”  

 

 

Spotlight on Standing Together and A Land for All

 

 

ALLMEP member Standing Together also held a session featuring Sally Abed, Member of the Standing Together National Leadership, who spoke about their work as one of the largest social grassroots movements in Israel. She stated “To build a popular demand for peace within Israeli society, you must understand it’s also connected to other demands of marginalized communities in Israel.” She spoke about their work to not only mobilize but organize people, about the critical humanitarian work they are focused on currently, and how they are “building a more sustainable force for change within Israeli society.” Towards the end of the session, Sally posed a powerful question that informs the work she is leading: “As a Palestinian woman, how do I actually lead a change? How do I change reality, not just condemn it, and describe it? How do you move beyond the paradigm of ‘it’s either Israel, or Palestine’?”

 

 

ALLMEP member, A Land for All (Two States, One Homeland) also held a panel on their vision for a  shared, equitable future in Israel-Palestine through a confederal approach. The sessions delved into the practical steps for creating a framework that respects the identities and aspirations of both Israelis and Palestinians.