Thousands of people filled every available space at the International Convention Centre in Jerusalem yesterday for the People Peace Summit – and it was a great success, with a full house, enthusiastic applauses from the audience for all the speakers, and a clear and unanimous declaration against war and for a political solution.
Organised by the It’s Time Coalition (an alliance of over 60 organisations for peace, reconciliation and coexistence), it was the largest civil gathering against the war since October 7th: a two-day event that began on Thursday 8 May with a programme packed with cultural events throughout the city, film screenings, concerts, art exhibitions by Jewish and Arab artists, and of course debates and meetings (list of events here: https://www.timeisnow.co.il/thursday-english). And yesterday, Friday, there was the main event at the Jerusalem International Convention Centre, with 12 simultaneous sessions following the plenary in the morning and more than 5,000 participants, including several Israeli military personnel opposed to the ongoing war, families of hostages, survivors of terrorist attacks, relatives mourning their dear ones who have been victims of the war, residents of the Gaza border region, legal experts, artists, diplomats, opinion leaders, Jews and Arabs, all united in a strong collective appeal: ‘It is time to end the war’.
“We are here to rebuild a strong peace camp” said Israeli actor and presenter Yossi Marshek as he opened the morning session. He was followed by the testimony of the pilots who, a few weeks ago, promoted a much-discussed letter (widely reported in the international press) signed by hundreds of Israeli military personnel currently (or no longer) in service, denouncing the unacceptability of war operations against civilian targets and calling for an immediate ceasefire.
Many ideas emerged during the opening session entitled ‘There are partners and there is a way’: too many to be summarised in a single article. But undoubtedly the main focus of the morning session was the debate on the various solutions on the table, for a political and stable solution to the conflict. A point that in particular was addressed by former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and former Palestinian Foreign Minister Nasser al-Qidwa, who presented their long-standing ‘peace plan’.
“Peace is essential, but we must offer the international community and our two peoples a plan that can be feasible” said Olmert “and the only option is the two-state solution. There are other ideas, such as the ‘one-state solution’, which we do not agree with because we believe it would lead to endless conflict between the two peoples. We are in favour of a solution that can bring about real change between the two peoples, and that solution is to guarantee the Palestinians the right to self-determination and freedom of movement and voting in their own state, alongside the State of Israel, with complete equality for all its citizens. Our plan therefore envisages a two-state solution based on Israel’s pre-1967 borders: when the Likud party first came to power, no one believed that Menachem Begin would make peace with Egypt and that Israel would withdraw from the Sinai, but it happened!”
“This conference is undoubtedly important” added Nasser al-Qidwa in a video message from the West Bank. “But since the Israeli establishment will do everything in its power to boycott this solution, it is up to us to believe in coexistence and the redistribution of territories as the only guarantee of a common future. And there is no doubt that settlement colonialism must be brought to an end. A choice must be made: either we believe that this land already belongs entirely to Israel, which therefore has the right to colonise it and expel the people who live there from the West Bank and Gaza; or we must create the conditions for coexistence between the two states, believing in the division of the territories without excluding forms of cooperation. (…) The first thing to resolve, however, is Gaza. It is urgent to reach an agreement on the release of hostages in parallel with the release of Palestinian prisoners. Clearly, the governing structure will have to be linked to the Palestinian National Authority, which will be responsible for the reconstruction of Gaza.
(…) Of course, many things will need to be negotiated: settlements, refugees, security measures on both sides. But nothing will be possible unless we create a new culture between Israelis and Palestinians. Today we are here to say that we must move forward and build a possible future together.”
Just a few minutes earlier, Palestinian journalist Mohammed Daraghmeh had described a situation in the West Bank as almost completely ‘Israelised’: “Going from Ramallah to Nablus, there is a whole geography and infrastructure – bridges, roads, signage, farms, solar energy plants – that makes you feel like you are in Israel. Israel has used the war in Gaza as a cover to effectively annex the West Bank. Sixty per cent is now subject to settlement schemes under Smotrich’s plan, which has created a department to facilitate the expansion of the settlers, while the Palestinian communities have become cantons. (…) If Israel and Palestine are left to their own devices, there is no hope. They have been negotiating unsuccessfully for 30 years, with Israel continuing to eat the cake put on the negotiating table. Without sufficient external pressure to stop the settlements, there is no future for a Palestinian state. But I would like to say to the Israelis that the expansion of settlements would be also counterproductive for them, because in the end we will inevitably have to talk about a single state, with all the problems that we can foresee. (…) It is therefore important that the international community get involved in this issue, with sanctions in order to discourage settlements and curb this expansion, which in fact makes a two-state solution increasingly difficult.”
Rula Hardal, co-director (together with Israeli May Pundak) of the organisation A Land for All, also spoke on the issue: “There is talk of two states, but the reality that has developed on the ground over decades is not one of separation. We are interconnected in so many ways and we must understand that another plan is needed to respond to this situation of interdependence. This is why we propose a confederal solution, with shared institutions and solutions, for example in the areas of health, environment, education, in other words… we need to work on coexistence. Then there are difficult issues that the two sides have never really addressed, such as the right of return. What happened on October 7th and the genocidal war that followed have been points of no return, both for the Palestinians and for the Israelis…”
May Pundak echoed this sentiment: “We must consider the issue of climate change, or related to water… we must understand that segregation does not guarantee a secure future for either side. Israeli-Palestinian interdependence is an important point.”
From Ramallah, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas sent a video statement: ‘Through justice, we can guarantee security and a future for all the peoples of the region: peace is possible and it will be up to all of us to make it possible.’
Representing the much-evoked ‘international community’, French President Emmanuel Macron intervened in a video message 5 min long: ‘Our hearts are with both Israeli and Palestinian families. We support with the utmost conviction this peace process that has made these two days in Jerusalem possible, coinciding with the celebrations of the end of the war 80 years ago in Europe. We promise to stand by your side for any future initiative.” He also mentioned a meeting that is expected to take place in Saudi Arabia in June. (link to the message on You Tube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkkDBUfo7gc)
Among the many speeches, there were also those from the people who have been personally affected by the war: Maoz Inon (one of the main organisers of this event), who lost both his parents on October 7th; Liat Atzili, whose husband Aviv was killed in the Nir Oz Kibbutz; Sigalit Hilel, mother of Ori, who was killed at the Nova Music Festival; Elana Kaminka, mother of Yannai, who was also killed on October 7th. “We have been victims of this cycle of violence for over a century” said Elana. ’It is time to use all our resources of humanity and creativity to resolve this conflict. We owe it to our children.”
Words echoed by the Palestinian Soumaya Bashir, from the organisation Women Wage Peace, while the smiling portrait Vivien Silver (founder of the same organization and victim of the Octeber 7th massacre as well) was projected on the main screen: “As women, we affirm life against those who only want death and destruction. We must not take refuge in silence and pain, it is time for everyone to unite in action.”
And from Makbula Nassar, journalist and activist, came the appeal: “Let us listen to the cries of the hungry children of Gaza. Let us put an end to the cruelty and crimes we have witnessed for too long, because there will be no ‘day after’ for our consciences. We all deserve to be freed from this endless oppression and we can do it only choosing peace.”
Both days were broadcast live to dozens of solidarity rallies in more than 20 cities around the world, including London, Berlin, Sydney, New York and Boston.
List of articles previously published on Pressenza on the People’s Peace Summit in Jerusalem:
Interview with Maoz Inon: https://www.pressenza.com/2025/04/towards-the-peoples-peace-summit-in-jerusalem-8th-and-9th-may-interview-with-one-of-the-organisers-maoz-inon/
Interview with Aziz Abu Sarah: https://www.pressenza.com/2025/04/towards-the-peoples-peace-summit-in-jerusalem-may-8-9-interview-with-aziz-abu-sarah/
Interview with Nivine Sandouka: https://www.pressenza.com/2025/04/towards-the-peoples-peace-summit-in-jerusalem-may-8-9-our-full-support-to-the-civil-society-says-the-palestinian-activist-nivine-sandouka/
Interview with Mika Almog, May Pundak and Maya Savir: https://www.pressenza.com/2025/05/towards-the-peoples-peace-summit-in-jerusalem-8-9-may-women-can-make-the-difference/
Event program: https://www.pressenza.com/2025/05/peoples-peace-summit-in-jerusalem-may-8-and-9-what-kind-of-peace-are-we-talking-about/
Translation from Italian by Gabriel Popham
