The human factor

[Violet_Crumble]

James Sturcke meets two women who believe the key to peace in the Middle East lies in face-to-face encounters between Israelis and Palestinians

Before sitting down, Robi Damelin, an Israeli woman whose youngest son was killed by a Palestinian sniper, removes a yellow rose from the coffee table.

"It's for my sake," says her friend, Nadwa Sarandah, a Palestinian whose sister was stabbed to death in west Jerusalem. "Before Naela was killed we were picking flowers, and she said she loved the yellow roses best. I always take them when I visit her grave."


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For Ms Damelin, 62, the news of her youngest son's death came when the army visited her office. David, a 28-year-old student and teacher of philosophy of education at Tel Aviv University, had reluctantly agreed to serve with the reserves.

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He was shot early one morning in March 2002 after hearing gunfire and racing out of the army post near Ramallah. He had not even got dressed.

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"You cannot reach justice until you humanise each other. It is the government that spreads fear, and simple people just take it. There is no trust between the two peoples. How can you build trust unless there is dialogue?"

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1574386,00.html

For those here who do agree with the last comment, the Parents' Circle Families Forum is a great organisation building trust between people who have far more reason for hatred and distrust than others...

Violet...