In this heartfelt and moving session from Festival 2020, Bassam Aramin and Robi Damelin, discuss their own experiences as bereaved parents looking for peace in Palestine and Israel.

Bassam Aramin was sent to Israeli prison as a 17-year-old for his role in the Palestinian resistance. He spent seven years there, and eventually started questioning the value of armed resistance. Several years after his release, he co-founded “Combatants for Peace.” He has refused to pick up arms since his release, even when, in 2007, his 10-year-old daughter, Abir, was killed by an Israeli soldier’s rubber bullet on her way home from school. He is also the subject of a documentary film – Within the Eye of the Storm. He is completing his Masters in Holocaust Studies.

Robi Damelin is the Israeli spokesperson of the Parents Circle. Her son, David, was killed by a Palestinian sniper in 2002 while guarding a checkpoint near a settlement during his army reserve service. Robi speaks to Israeli, Palestinian and international audiences all over the world to demand that reconciliation be a part of any peace agreement. Robi was named a 2015 Woman of Impact by Women in the World. In 2014, Robi was selected by the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice as one of four Women PeaceMakers. She is the protagonist featured in the documentary, One Day after Peace.