In this dire circumstance, when Gaza and Israel are celebrating the anniversary of the last firefight, which occurred a brief six months ago, the chances for peace cease to be visible at all. Even though the shaky truce has persisted since August, the daunting impediments to the reconciliation appear more mammoth to the ground than ever, suggesting the looming uncertainties to the conflicted regions.
The warring Gaza Strip left a large part of the people with physical and psychological pictures for the rest of their lives. Families curse the cruelty of the unceasing bombing that annually robs them of the carbuncles of their loved ones. At the same time, the debris of razed houses and infrastructure scantly leaves proof of the nonexistent interest in the infinity of violence. However, even in this oppressive situation, which also segregates the Palestinian people, their indomitable nature and positive fighting spirit overcome these obstacles en route to their ultimate goals of keeping their self-determination and independence.
In the same way the grief spills across the border, the emotional and mental toll of the conflict affect equally the Israelis as well. Missionaries’ natural screams and the rumbling missiles have become familiar choruses, establishing an ambience of persistent tenseness and tearing the fragile normality. For most people, the chase for peaceful coexistence and a safe, changing environment remains an unrealized dream, continually slipping into a deeper darkness as the spiral continues.
The more the first parties continue to adhere to their different accounts, the further away we move from that idea of reconciliation, which is also fraught with difficulties. The troublesome problems of borders, settlements and Jerusalem’s status have been dragging on many multilateral talks as long as open wounds are unable to be healed, which denies all international efforts to resolve them.
Nevertheless, small sparks of resilience can be seen even in the underbelly of despair. The civil society groups on both sides of the conflict facing each other are unstoppable as they are, unfortunately, running this business of dialogue and planting the seeds of mutual understanding. Despite the usually unnoticed nature of their efforts, it implicitly suggests a lasting hope in achieving peace through diplomacy and the strong human desire for peace.
