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A commitment to Middle East peace

Reaching out to civilians in need

by Tahija Vikalo

For decades, conflict in the Middle East has had devastating consequences, but events in 2006 are leading toward a watershed moment that may have profound and long-lasting implications.

An AFSC youth program festival in Gaza
bolstered spirits during a difficult time.

As each new crisis has rocked the region, AFSC staff on the ground in Gaza and partners in Lebanon and Israel have reached out to assist civilians caught in the middle of political, economic, and armed conflicts. AFSC also has continued to work toward regional peace and reconciliation by encouraging dialogue around difficult, often controversial, topics.

Earlier this year, AFSC launched an appeal asking for support to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. And when fighting erupted between Israel and Lebanon in July, AFSC expanded the appeal to include aid for civilians in those countries.

In Lebanon and Israel, AFSC is working through partner groups with whom we have well-established relationships.

For example, AFSC is supporting an Israeli group of Jewish and Palestinian women, Isha l’Isha (Woman to Woman), to produce an information kit that covers a variety of needs, raises awareness about the effects of violent conflict on women, and provides individual and group support to women affected by trauma.

In Lebanon, AFSC supports Permanent Peace Movement (PPM), one of the country’s most prominent peace and justice organizations. PPM is helping internally displaced people by providing medicine, food and milk for children, and basic hygiene products. The organization also will repair damaged schools so they can receive students at the beginning of the school year.

In Gaza and the West Bank, AFSC relies on the many connections that the Quaker Palestine Youth Program has developed. A committee of young men and women that includes current and former program participants is receiving proposals from youth groups involved in AFSC’s Public Achievement program, which encourages civic engagement among young people. Some of the projects proposed so far include:

• collecting and distributing food baskets, school bags, or school uniforms to the poorest members of the community;
• helping women who are sole providers for their families market and sell their products; and
• buying produce from local farmers and distributing it to poor families.

AFSC continues to be inspired by the efforts of people in the region, especially youth, to find alternatives to violence and their determination to improve their societies.

Our hopes are well summarized by Nour Nouri, an Iraqi member of the AFSC-initiated Middle East Regional Youth Action Network, which helps young people better understand changes in the region and develop projects to improve their communities.

“We are still young and we are just a generation of war…that’s our destiny, but hopefully we’ll make a better one for our children to come,” Nour says. “That’s our commitment and obligation.”

For more information, please visit www.afsc.org/gaza.

Tahija Vikalo is the Program Coordinator for the Middle East and Europe Region.

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