After Middle East peace deal, I hope to be friends again with pro-Palestinian protesters

Professor Joe Goldblatt contemplates 15 months of anguish for people on both sides of the Middle East’s sharpest dividing line after a peace deal was struck between Israel and Hamas

During the past 15 months since the extermination of more than 1,200 people in Israel – the largest atrocity against the Jewish people since the Holocaust – I have experienced constant anguish and terror that is shared by both Jews and non-Jews, Israelis and Palestinians.

Shortly after the October 7, 2023, attack, the University of Edinburgh’s associate chaplain invited me to a ‘listening session’ for Jewish students affected by the attack. I asked her how many students she thought would attend and she replied: “I do not know. This is the first time I have done this. Perhaps a dozen?” She could have added this was the first time she needed to do this because of the impact of this atrocity upon students.

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When I arrived for the meeting, there were 40 students sitting in a circle with the saddest and most frightened faces I have ever witnessed upon young people.

Orly Efraim grieves for her niece, Eden Liza Auhaion, who was killed at the Nova music festival during Hamas's attacks on October 7, 2023 (Picture: Amir Levy)Orly Efraim grieves for her niece, Eden Liza Auhaion, who was killed at the Nova music festival during Hamas's attacks on October 7, 2023 (Picture: Amir Levy)
Orly Efraim grieves for her niece, Eden Liza Auhaion, who was killed at the Nova music festival during Hamas's attacks on October 7, 2023 (Picture: Amir Levy) | Getty Images

Blinking back tears

The chaplain asked the students to introduce themselves and describe how they were feeling. She began by sharing her own personal experience of war as a child in Eastern Europe.

Next the students began to tentatively speak. Every one had a direct link to Israel, either through a sibling fighting in the Israel Defence Forces, a family member or friend who was a hostage, or worse, a friend or family member who was murdered on October 7.

After most of the students had expressed their horror and fears, the final student to speak was seated to my right. She looked me directly in the eye and said she was a postgraduate student from Israel studying information technology.

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Blinking back huge tears, she said, in a trembling voice, that she had not left her accommodation for a week because when she looked out her window she saw dozens of Palestinian flags fluttering and hundreds of her fellow students shouting “Death to Israel!”

I then reached in my pocket, gave her a tissue and my business card and, taking her hand, said: “Here is how to contact me. I stay near you. If you ever need to go to the shops, to class, or to run an errand, call me and I will be your escort.”

‘One day it will be over’

Drawing a deep breath, I turned to the other students and said: “Because I am older than you I have had more experience with wars in the Middle East. Therefore, I want to prepare you for what may be a long, difficult conflict. However, I also believe that one day it will be over.”

The woman sitting next to me exploded with tears firing like missiles from her eyes. “How do you know?” she shouted at me.

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I turned back to the other students and quietly said: “Just look around this room. We are all members of the Jewish people and we are all still here. We have suffered the destruction of our ancient temples, we were tortured during the Inquisition, we were expelled from England for 300 years, six million Jews were exterminated during the Holocaust, and today we live with rising levels of antisemitism all over the world. And despite all this, we are still here.”

Slowly and silently, the students and chaplain nodded their heads in agreement and the female student who was angry earlier reached over and gave my hand a gentle squeeze.

‘From the river to the sea’

A few weeks later, I was invited to speak at the School of Divinity in New College, the University of Edinburgh, on the Mound. As I climbed the steep Playfair Steps to reach my destination, I heard the loud roar of an angry mob.

Upon reaching the top of the stairs, I saw what seemed like hundreds of Palestinian flags affixed to tall poles and an equal number of people shouting: “From the river to the sea!” This phrase often strikes fear in the hearts of Jewish people who equate it with Hamas’s stated desire for the permanent elimination of the state of Israel.

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Leading these chants were political friends with whom, over many years, I had fostered deep, positive and respectful relationships. I wondered how I could face them as a member of the Jewish people when they were calling for the end of the Jewish state.

I then had a decision to make. I could turn around and go home. Perhaps I could walk around the far edges of the angry mob and sneak in the back door. Or, I could square my shoulders, raise my head in pride, and walk through and among my friends. And that is exactly what I did with a small minor enhancement.

Handshakes, hugs and kisses

Every time I met one of my political friends, I smiled, shook their hand, hugged them, and depending upon our familiarity, in some cases I kissed them on both cheeks. They all appeared stunned and somewhat embarrassed.

Were they embarrassed by my warm public affection or that, as a Jewish person, I had observed their behaviour or perhaps both?

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When I finally entered the quiet space in the New College courtyard, I paused and thought to myself: “I hope and pray, one day, I may be friends with these people once again.”

My reasoning for facing my friends and hoping for the renewal of our friendship is based upon a verse from the Hebrew bible. It is the same verse I recited at my Bar Mitzvah 60 years ago. The prophet Micah wrote: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

I hope and pray that in future years, as a result of this turmoil, our friendships will indeed be closer and stronger as together we learn to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with whoever or whatever we believe in.

Professor Joe Goldblatt is co-chair of the Edinburgh Interfaith Association. His views are his own. For more information visit www.joegoldblatt.scot

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