By
Rebecca Missel
Arizona Daily Wildcat
A desire for peace the prevailing sentiment of panel, audience
Shoshana Green understands how hard it is for people in the Middle East to make peace.
"There is a heartbreaking process of giving up what they truly think they deserve," said Green, a lecturer in Judaic studies who grew up in Israel. "But there is no choice but to look it in the eye and do exactly that."
Nearly 250 people attended the panel discussion, "Mideast Update: Basics on the Present Crisis," yesterday in the Memorial Student Union to discuss the violence that has plagued the region during the past three weeks.
Representatives of the University of Arizona community sat on the six-member panel and discussed Israeli, Palestinian, Jewish, Muslim and neutral points of view on the controversy.
Yesterday's forum was one of a series of forums sponsored by the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, the Near Eastern studies department, the committee on Judaic studies and the Hillel Foundation. The panel aimed to open dialogue and create understanding about the complex issues surrounding peace in the Middle East.
"There will be no peace until understanding is reached and there is justice for all," said moderator Ed Wright, an associate professor in Near Eastern and Judaic studies.
"Our job as professors is to give academic answers," added Wright, who is also the Judaic studies program director. "This is not a matter solved in our heads, but rather in our hearts."
Discussion began with Near Eastern studies professor Charles Smith who provided historical background.
"The turning point, in terms of hostility, was the 1967 War," Smith said. "We are still dealing with the results of that and the 1973 War today."
One of the major problems in reaching a resolution is that decisions made by leaders are not accepted by the public, Smith said.
"The actions of politicians are not translating into the neighborhoods," he said. "There is a dynamic of rage."
Jamila Miqbel, a Near Eastern studies senior, spoke about her family's experiences in a village near the Palestinian city of Ramallah.
"They are frustrated and dissatisfied and there is not much hope," she said. "I don't think the fighting brings results but it does bring our issues to the world stage."
Miqbel said due to poor economic situations in many parts of the occupied territories, the Palestinian people feel like they cannot make a living in their homeland. People think Palestinian Liberation Organization President Yasser Arafat has no control over his people, she said.
Green pointed to extremists on both sides who are responsible for inflaming passions and therefore violence.
"There is no way this problem is going to be solved without both sides reconciling to the fact that they can't have it the way you want it," she said.
Though many media commentators have said the conflict is based in centuries-old religious disputes, Mark Tessler, director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, said the reality is quite the opposite.
"It is not an ancient blood feud," said Tessler, who also serves as head of the Near Eastern studies department near and a political science professor.
"People will accept compromises if they have trust," he said. "Each side is waiting to hear from the other, they must recognize each other before progress can be made."
The Zionist movement of the 1880s led many Jews from around the world to settle in Israel, sparking tensions with indigenous Palestinians who felt an equal right to the area, Tessler said.
"This conflict is fundamentally between two nationalisms - the Israelis and the Palestinians," he said. "It is misleading to call it the Arab-Israeli conflict."
Panel discussions like this are necessary because while the public hears a lot of information, they do not really know what is going on, said Mohyeddin Abdulaziz, director of information technology for the James E. Rogers College of Law and a native of Palestine.
"The Palestinian situation has not changed - the city centers are surrounded by vicious settlers and are bombarded by Israeli tanks," Abdulaziz said. "That is not the way our people are going to live forever."
After serving in the Israeli army, Nir Ortal, Judaic studies adjunct lecturer, said he cannot blame either side for the violence and that the near future will bring many changes in the region.
"The way I see it, a Palestinian state is not far," he said. "We should take the risk and go for peace now."
Jonathan Freirich, assistant director of the Hillel Foundation, said the discussion was a success because of the high turnout.
"It shows how important this issue is," he said. "People are interested in finding out more about the peace process."
Like many others who identify with one side of the conflict, Freirich said he wanted an end to the violence.
"I absolutely want peace," he said. "It is in the best interests of everyone in the world to have peace in that region."
For students from Arab nations, having panel discussions like these helps to facilitate much needed conversation.
"Everyone lives in the same place," said Souad Sherif, who is from Libya and a graduate student in the School of Renewable and Natural Resources. "I feel people need to be educated about what's going on."
When she first visited Israel, Alicia Radin, a studio art sophomore, wanted and believed in peace. However, after spending time with the people, she realized that dream was not entirely possible.
"Every Jew has a God-given right to return and live in Israel," she said. "I feel like the Israelis keep compromising but they're not getting anything."
Definite inequalities in regards to occupied land and concessions made to the other side exist, Radin said, but she still feels sad about the fighting.
"When I heard the news of this latest violence, I cried," she said.
