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http://womensenews.org/story/peace/150714/women-in-israel-fasting-mark-gaza-anniversary
Israel – Jewish & Arab Women Fast to Mark Gaza Anniversary – Call for PEACE
By Rochelle G. Saidel and Sonja M.
Hedgepeth - WeNews Correspondents - July 14, 2015
Organized by the Women Wage Peace movement, the cross-sectional group has
been holding a vigil outside the Prime Minister's residence since last week,
part of its 50-day fast to mark the anniversary of last summer's Operation
Protective Edge in Gaza.
Hadar Kluger
at the Women Wage Peace tent near the prime minister's residence in Jerusalem.
Credit: Sonja M. Hedgepeth
JERUSALEM
(WOMENSENEWS)--A group of women from the Women Wage Peace movement in Israel have been holding a vigil
outside the prime minister's residence in Jerusalem since last week, part of
their 50-day fast to mark the anniversary of last summer's Operation Protective
Edge in Gaza.
The group of
Israeli Jewish and Arab women are calling upon the government of Israel to
return to the negotiating table and initiate a resumption of the peace talks
with Israel's neighbors as the only way to ensure a safe and secure future for
today and future generations.
Most of the
women are wearing the organization's white T-shirts with the turquoise and
black "Women Wage Peace" logo in Hebrew, Arabic and English. The
women are taking turns fasting, and those who do so are also wearing small
turquoise signs around their necks that say "I am fasting." Every day
at 11 a.m. the women ending their fasting period give these tags to the next
group of fasting women.
The group's
numbers are hard to know since the fasters come and go. There are at least a
couple of dozen and they could number as many as 60.
The
movement, which is much larger than those staging this fast, was founded after
last summer's Gaza operation when thousands of Israeli women rose up and said
"No more!" They state that their symbolic action is not a protest,
but a sign of the support for a creative initiative towards a political
self-sustaining agreement.
One
participant, Hadar Kluger, told us: "Arab-Israeli women are part of this
movement from all over the country and we share a common understanding. We
should create an understanding between left, right and center that keeping
negotiations and going back to the table is a shared goal. This is the first
level. Most people want peace and quiet and this can increase hope."
The group's
mission statement says its main goals are to influence politicians and opinion
makers to work vigilantly towards achieving a political agreement, as well as
to give women leadership roles in planning, decision-making and the negotiating
process.