From When the Rain Returns: Towards Justice and Reconciliation in Palestine and Israel

We oppose the use of violence to resolve human conflicts. We grieve for each precious life lost or shattered. We mourn especially the civilians - Israeli and Palestinian - who have been killed and we condemn without reservation the acts of violence that have struck them down in the course of their daily lives. We recognize the grievous harm done to societies who come to rely upon the use of force to solve their problems, as well as the damage done to those they attempt to coerce. As many persons in the region have concluded, there is no solution to this conflict through violence.

Learn more about the AFSC book When the Rain Returns.

Profiles of Peace

June 2007 marked the 40th anniversary of the Israeli military occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. At AFSC, we’re taking this time to reflect on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and to appreciate Palestinians and Israelis who have worked for peace and justice.

AFSC presented Faces of Hope – Profiles of Peace. Profiles of Peace includes 40 short biographies of Israeli and Palestinian peace builders.

2008 AFSC/IFPB Olive Harvest Delegation

November 8-22, 2008 - Join the American Friends Service Committee and Interfaith Peace-Builders (IPFB) this fall to travel to Israel/Palestine. Your participation as an eyewitness to the situation will enrich your understanding of the conflict and empower your work back in the United States.

Palestinian students attend class in a Gaza refugee camp. Photo: AFSC

Commemorating
Sixty Years Since 1948

This year the world commemorates the 60th anniversary of creation of the state of Israel and the Palestinian Nakba. Nakba, the Arabic word for "catastrophe", refers to the displacement and dispossession of the Palestinian people. For some this will be a cause for celebration, for others mourning or protest.

Legacies of 1948 Delegation:
Report 5: The Weight of the Past
Report 4: Bethlehem – Reconciliation & Return

More on Israel/Palestine at 60:
Video from the Acknowledging the Past, Imagining the Future Speaking Tour