Abi

Peace of the Brave? When I was 11 years old in Gaza, I remember a particularly deadly Hamas suicide bombing in Israel in 2001. Soon after, a news conference was held by Yasser Arafat in which he called for de-escalation and asked Hamas to stop undermining the Palestinian Authority through its violence against Israelis. He ended his conference calling for a mutual ceasefire and renewing his commitment to bolster the “peace of the brave,” a phrase that grew in prominence during the 1990s at the height of the Oslo Peace process. This phrase (سلام الشُجعان) was always mocked by anti-peace Palestinian factions and their mouthpieces. Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and a few small militant groups would instead refer to it as the peace of the cowardly, the treacherous and the weak. There was so much anti-Arafat propaganda which specifically condemned him for believing that peace with Israel was courageous, saying instead that armed resistance was the only possible courageous act for the Palestinian national movement. I remember wondering about who was right: was peace indeed cowardly or was it actually courageous and brave? Unfortunately, Hamas created so much confusion, uncertainty and doubt among Palestinians about peace, making the word itself sound radioactive, toxic, unsavory and inherently treasonous. As time went on, and I learned so much more about history, the peace process, Hamas, conflict resolution, and even some Muslim teachings and scholarly interpretations, I realized that for all of his faults and shortcomings, Arafat was absolutely right. Peace does require brave courage to wage, promote, adopt, embrace and act upon. It is so much easier to be consumed by hate, incitement, violence and vengeance. Tribalism, entrenched narratives, lack of pragmatism and blind rage cause many nations and societies to walk away from peace and perpetuate a vicious cycle of violence and enmity. Again and for all his faults and horrendous leadership mistakes during the 1970s and 1980s, Arafat made an incredibly courageous decision to renounce violence and recognize Israel and its right to exist — he would still go on to make detrimental and disastrous mistakes after this brave decision. Nevertheless, he set a precedent within the Palestinian national movement to acknowledge that there will be no full liberation of Palestine from the river to the sea and that recognizing Israel and working with the Jewish State is necessary and inevitable for peace and the well-being of the Palestinian people. Brave and courageous Palestinians and Israelis must wage peace and find the slightest of common ground to give their people a chance at a better future. This will start with engagement, dialogue, conversations, and discussions. Yes, the disagreements are vast, and emotions are running high; yet I truly believe that cross-aisle gestures of goodwill based upon mutual respect, acknowledging our common humanity, and embracing that neither side is going anywhere can help break the entrenched narratives and start the slow healing journey. Peace requires courage to challenge dominant narratives and withstand reactionary accusations of disloyalty or treason. And yes, political decisions are ultimately what will bring about a transformation of conditions on the ground. However, that will be useless if people-to-people connections are not made. Governments make political agreements, but people make true and lasting peace. My own suffering and hardships, the death of so many family members, and the continued horror that my folks in Gaza are experiencing is precisely what motivates me to seek a different path forward. I’ve talked to former Israel hostages released by Hamas and to families of hostages who have an incredible capacity for compassion, and also want to use their suffering/awful experiences to push for a different reality. Inshallah in our lifetime, and with some courageous individual acts and steps, we will have true and lasting peace of the brave.