On May 19, 2021, two weeks into the May War between Israeli forces and the Gaza Strip’s Hamas, 10 Israelis and 200 Palestinians had been killed.
At the beginning of Ramadan, one month before the war began, the Israeli Police Force closed the Damascus Gate, despite it being a popular location for Muslims to gather. This was in preparation for Jerusalem Day, which coincided with the holiday. Several evictions of Palestinians in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, in favor of Jewish settlers, also played a role in the violence of Hamas rockets and Israeli airstrikes.
Mahmoud Shakshak, a Gazan university student, expressed how angry he felt due to the fact that he could die at any moment and he wouldn’t have a shelter to protect him. Ilan Hazam of the Leaders of Tomorrow initiative told Middle East Matters that he is proud to be a part of a country that defends itself, but is frustrated with the ongoing wars and violence. He said he wishes to see a solution that doesn’t lead to violence, but to coexistence.
“I see that we can live together. Coexistence between Israelis and Arab Israelis is something that happened and has been going for so many years,” Shay Zavdi, director of AJC Access Israel, said. “But I do feel that if we can do this there, or even with our Egyptian or Jordanian neighbors, and our new Emirati and Bahrani friends, there’s no reason we shouldn’t be able to do that with our Palestinian neighbors as well.”
ALLMEP’s Executive Director John Lyndon joined Middle East Matters’ Sanam Shantyei for an interview on the violence.
“I think [the testimonies] accurately reflect how complicated this is for many Israelis and Palestinians who are each suffering, but not all equally suffering,” he said.” I think, for many people, some of the people who spoke, they have a background working for peace, working for equality.”
Lyndon said it is tragic to see so much of the work done in the last 20 years come apart. It is important to remember how young both the region and the societies are.
“These young people have grown up in a period completely devoid of hope, functioning diplomacy, no memory of what, in retrospect, was the “good old days” of the Oslo period,” he said. “They’ve known only war, continued settlement, expansion and embedded in justice. And we, internationally, have a responsibility in trying to manage this conflict rather than resolving it. We’re seeing the outcomes of that right now.”
Yet, Lyndon warned against the irresponsibility of reducing the current violence to just an issue between Israel and Hamas, as it would be a “huge error.”
He said this is a symptom rather than a cause. The cause of the conflict is a 54-year-old occupation that has yet to be ended. On top of that, there is now a denial of legitimacy that both societies have about the other to live on the land in any capacity whether it’s one state, two states or another solution. It’s time to tackle the underlying issues, he said.
“I think it’d be a true tragedy if we brokered a ceasefire and then tried to go back to normal because the next round will be worse.”
Another issue that has stemmed from the violence is the unraveling of relations between Jews and Arabs in the region, even those in mixed cities in Israel which, to Lyndon, is the most worrying aspect. He assures that there will always be sectarian divisions in Israel and Palestine but it is complicated due to citizens sharing a national identity, and sometimes a religious faith
“Every time things escalate in the skies, they suddenly escalate in the streets,” he said. “We’ve seen so many great movements on the ground – many of them ALLMEP members working to bring together Arab and Jewish citizens. There is resilience there, but it’s very difficult with this kind of kinetic energy of this conflict going on.”
However, he is optimistic about the capacity for civil society, especially in shared communities and Arab and Jewish cities. There is a clear difference that has taken shape in the last 20 years in the form of civil society:
“We saw terrible violence in Oct. 2000, at the onset of the Second Intifada,” he said. “What’s different now is this mushrooming of civil society organizations out on the streets, maybe 60, 70 demonstrations in every shared city in Israel in the past week. Jews and Arabs together where they’re not being broken down. They’re together shoulder-to-shoulder, saying ‘end the occupation, bring about peace and equality for all citizens.’ There’s reason for hope there.”
There is reason for frustration, though, due to the fact that the United States “pumps” money into Israeli defense, but grassroots movements and civil society organizations do not receive the same treatment. Lyndon said his worry is the creation of an elite diplomatic process when populations are not ready. He said the region needs to work toward an equitable peace deal while also empowering and radically funding grassroots and bottom-up movements.
In doing this, it will strengthen the hand of diplomats and will also transform political incentives. He notes that, at this moment, no Israeli or Palestinian leader is incentivized by their citizens to move toward peace.
Lyndon does not have the ability to be cynical about the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians.
“I spend all day speaking to these peace activists on both sides of the Green Line, seeing what they’re doing, living amidst this violence and injustice right now,” he said. “But again, it’s not about working for this bottom-up, grassroots change absent tackling the injustices and the reality we’ve been talking about. It’s both at the same time.”
It’s not about Arabs and Jews, Israelis and Palestinians getting together to feel good, he said.
“It’s to disrupt the injustice, the military occupation, the ongoing conflict and the dehumanization. It has to be for that purpose, otherwise it won’t work, and otherwise, Israelis and Palestinians can’t be convinced to join these movements. It has to be goal-determined.”
