‘I, son of Vivian Silver killed on 7 October say peace is the common destiny of Israelis and Palestinians’

Yonatan Zeigen to AsiaNews: impossible to ‘destroy’ Hamas, which is an ‘idea’, the ‘mentality’ must be changed. Continuing the occupation ‘will always return to 6 October’. To commemorate his mother's battles, each year a prize will be awarded to an Arab and a Jewish woman working for coexistence. The embrace between Maoz Inon and Azia Abu Sarah in front of Pope Francis is an example ‘of what we all aspire to’. 

Milan (AsiaNews) - ‘It is not possible to destroy Hamas, because Hamas is an idea’ of ‘resistance’ and if you don't change ‘the mentality’ and ‘the reality around us it doesn't matter how many members of Hamas you can kill, because new ones will always be formed and in greater numbers’. And continuing with ‘the logic of the occupation [...] you will always go back to 6 October and that is not a good position to be in, for anyone’.

This is how Yonatan Zeigen, son of the Israeli-Canadian pacifist Vivian Silver, victim of the 7 October attack that triggered Israel's war in Gaza with its load of death and further violence, analyses the spiral of violence and terror that is bloodying the Holy Land. Speaking to AsiaNews, the activist, who has picked up his mother's baton by promoting an award inspired by her decades of work [the ‘Vivian Silver Impact Award’ to be given annually to an Arab and Jewish woman] in favour of peace and coexistence, emphasises that there is ‘no positive consequence’ to the conflict.

A conflict that continues unresolved also due to the obvious responsibilities of the international community, first and foremost the United States and Europe, which must stop ‘importing our conflict into their countries’ but must start ‘exporting solutions’. 

The Patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins, Card. Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who in a reflection posted on the patriarchate's website on his return from the Strip wants to send ‘a clear message to the decision-makers. Enough killing! The war, must end and avenues must be opened for various forms of aid to avoid an imminent humanitarian crisis. I hope that this nightmare will end quickly’.

Meanwhile in Israel controversy mounts over the request by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague for an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant (as well as Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh). For the magistrate, two of the highest offices of the Jewish State, in particular the head of the government, are guilty of ‘crimes against humanity and war crimes’. A decision that, for once, has compacted the political class with harsh accusations against the court, with the leaders of the radical wing Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir in the front row calling the magistrates ‘anti-Semites’ while pressing for an acceleration of the Gaza invasion. 
Below is Yonatan Zeigen's interview with AsiaNews:

Why did you decide to launch the ‘Vivian Silver Impact Award’ and what is the legacy left by one of the most influential figures in Israeli pacifism?
We wanted to create something that would be meaningful and go beyond her death, continuing her testimony and legacy as a peacemaker, peace-builder and sharer in Israeli society, as well as highlighting the role of women. For [women] to be given more and more places and roles to influence society. This is what she did throughout her life and it is our duty to use her name and carry on her work, encouraging other women to do the same and pursue her values and ideals.  

What does it mean today to be a ‘pacifist’ in a land torn apart by conflict and violence?
In Israel and Palestine, we have been in a protracted state of war for over 100 years now. We seem to have lost the ability and skill to use different means and ways in this conflict: the way of diplomacy, of dialogue. And that all that is left is military force and political violence, but I do not think this is constructive. What we can do is to change our way of thinking and acting, to realise that if Israel's interest is security and Palestine's interest is freedom and a state, non-violence is the only way to achieve this. Military force, on the other hand, is only a harbinger of further violence. 

What did the embrace between Maoz Inon and Aziz Abu Sarah in front of Pope Francis last weekend mean to you?
It means everything! This is a true example, this is what we - me, Maoz and Aziz - who work for peace aspire to. We are not special, we are ordinary people and proof that it is possible to coexist. In this sense, it is very important to have signs of cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians because our failures, our problems, are the same for everyone. The defeats are common, a detriment for all, just as the successes are for the benefit of all, in a destiny that is common. 

The pontiff's words in support of the Women Wage Peace movement at the Verona meeting were also significant...
Of course! Also Women Wage Peace, which was born in 2014 [after the war in Gaza], is another example of an organisation of people who have come together - Israelis, joined by sister organisations in Palestine - and who have raised their voices to clearly state that we need change. It is very important for initiatives like this to receive support and legitimacy from the outside world, especially from global leaders and prominent personalities like the pope, who extols the work and message of organisations like this. 

In the aftermath of the UN resolution, you said that recognition of the Palestinian state would not be a reward for terrorism, but a consolation for you children of the victims. Why?
We are not in the presence of a war between Israelis and Palestinians, but we are in the presence of a conflict between people who want life and peace and people who want death, destruction. These kinds of people are present on both sides. For me, a Palestinian state and any kind of solution to the conflict are a prize first and foremost, not terrorism or violence. They go in the direction of peace and security. Also because there will never be freedom and security without peace and there will be no peace if we continue with the logic of occupation. We must work together with the Palestinians to reach a viable and sustainable solution. 

After almost eight months of war, what is the prevailing feeling in Israeli society: revenge, desire for peace, anger?
The vast majority of Israelis support the war because they see it as the only way to bring security to the country. But this is wrong. My mother Vivian used to quote Maslow in the famous phrase ‘if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail’ [the law of the hammer]. If we only have the military option every problem will be seen from the perspective of the use of force and we will be stuck in a situation of permanent conflict, without seeing alternatives to reality but it is wrong and counterproductive because it will lead us to further violence and loss of life. 

On a personal level, how did your view of reality and events change after 7 October, the terrorist attack by Hamas and the war unleashed by Israel in the Strip?
I have not changed my position in terms of ideals, but I have changed my way of acting. I realised that I must be part of the change, invest in the change. My ideas have not changed, but if possible they have strengthened, and there is more involvement in this quest for peace. 

What would your mother, Vivian Silver, have said when faced with the tragedy of the civilians in the Strip and what would she have done?
I think she would have been horrified at this, her heart would have been broken, but I think she would have acted by speaking out, by pressing, what I am doing is what she would have done. She would have strongly shouted ‘not in my name’ the war in Gaza, revenge is not a viable strategy. 7 October is proof that we need peace more strongly, not further wars and the use of force. 

Is the return of the hostages or a hypothetical ‘victory’ in the war against Hamas more important to Israeli society?
There is no positive answer or consequence from the war, and we cannot achieve a positive answer by resorting to it. It is not possible to destroy Hamas, because Hamas is an idea. It is an idea of resistance and if you don't change the mentality, if you don't change the reality around us, it doesn't matter how many members of Hamas you can kill because new ones will always be formed and in greater numbers. If you continue with the logic of the occupation and do not apply a wise political vision, you will always go back to 6 October and that is not a good position to be in, for anyone. 

Are the war in Gaza, the occupation, the stalemate in the peace talks, and an increasingly distant prospect of agreement failures of the international community?
Of course! The conflict between Israel and the Palestinians is not something we can manage on our own, but it is the world itself that has invested in the status quo. A reality of war and occupation. If we want change, if the international community itself wants to change the reality, it must change the way it operates in the region. We cannot have an international community that says the situation is not good, but continues to guarantee and send money to Israel, to Unwra [UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East], this is the status quo and nothing changes. Look at what happened in Northern Ireland, where the international community invested time and money for a solution, then for infrastructure giving the two sides a chance to reach an agreement. There is no money in Israel and Palestine to create peace, only to maintain a permanent conflict, to buy weapons in Israel and for refugees in the Palestinian Authority. They must change the paradigm, the interests, show that they want to work for a solution and come to an agreement. All this must be done with an international alliance, like the G7, or rather the ‘P7’: an alliance for peace that works towards a solution.

In conclusion, we need the international community, the US and Europe above all, to stop importing our conflict into their countries and start exporting solutions. Pro-Palestine or pro-Israel demonstrations on either side are counterproductive, they must march together for peace. No one will be free without a solution to this conflict! 

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