In 1993’s Oslo Accord, Israel acknowledged the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and gave them limited autonomy in return for an end claims on Israeli territory.
August 28 last year, the Second Intifada began. Three Guilford students and two others, all recently returned from Palestine, participated in a forum on the violence between Palestine and Israel on Tuesday, August 28. All five speakers were able to provide first-hand accounts of devastation.

All members of the forum stayed with Palestinian families, and took part in their daily lives. Each speaker expressed astonishment at the differences between their own lives and the live of the Israeli’s.
”The boys, when they were thirteen, would have this game where, when they heard gunfire, they would try to guess whose it was Palestinian or Israeli and what type of gun it was,” said Priscilla Ewen.
Alex Stoesen, a member of Guilford’s faculty was also astounded at the differences. “The teenagers were quite different from the ones here. They were grown. They had faced the world.”

While some of the questions were directed toward the panelist’s experiences, at various points during the forum, the panelists were asked to explain the actions of both sides of the war, as well the actions of the Israeli and American government.

Asked what the Israeli forces hope to achieve, Michael Zarkin said, “I can’t answer [your question]. I’m not a member of the current Israeli government.” Zarkin is the programming director of Hillel at University of North Carolinain Greensboro, and has led several groups in the pasts on trips to Israel.

Zarkin was able to answer several questions regarding the history and the social conditions of the conflict, due to his frequent visits. “They [refer to the war] as the Matsav?the situation?the most devastating euphemism I can imagine.”
An audience member who identified herself as Jordanian reminded the panel of the shared suffering in Israel and Palestine.

”I saw people cut into pieces in front of me, when I was in the seventh grade. I’ve lived through four wars in my home. It happens all over the place. There are so many Palestinian kids who are suffering. Both sides want revenge. We just need to pray for both sides.”

The panelists agreed that the perception of the two sides was misrepresented, mainly due to our government’s affiliation with Israel. They agreed that the best thing people everywhere can do to help end the violence is to tell the truth.

When asked how the students incorporate what they have experienced into their Quaker beliefs, the answers were varied.
”I believe the situation in the Middle East is one of the most blunt and unavoidable arguments for nonviolence,” said Ben Hebner.
Hebner went on to explain the lack of political change that the violence was accomplishing.

Molly Sword felt the solution was less clear. “I’m still trying to sort out my opinion as a pacifist.”

Sword was not conflicted about her opinion of the people involved.
”Their hospitality was something I rarely see in America, where people have more time, more money, more happiness.”