Parents Circle Under Attack

Yesterday right-wing activists, led by MK Ben-Gvir, demonstrated outside an Israeli public school in Jerusalem where bereaved Palestinian and Israeli members came to speak to the students about their loss and their choice for peace through our Dialogue Meetings program.

Protestors demonstrating against Parents Circle bereaved members, January 23, 2022

The school’s administration, the PTA, and even the Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem came to support the Parents Circle bereaved members and its messages of peace. 

This did not deter the protesters from shouting in front of the school during our program, waving the Israeli flag and signs saying “WE WANT REVENGE!” 

The Parents Circle has been holding more than 250 Dialogue Meetings each year including in Israeli schools. It is an opportunity for Israelis to meet Palestinians as humans often for the first time and ask questions about the conflict.  

Yishai Moore, a graduate of the high school, distributed a message to his fellow alumni: “Anyone who knows the Israeli-Palestinian Parents Circle – Families Forum knows that this is one of the most inspiring organizations in the country. It’s an organization of Israelis and Palestinians who have lost the most precious of all in the conflict, and from the loss have learned to seek the common and the hope for a better future.”

The PCFF’s Co-directors, Yuval Rahamim and Osama Abu Ayyash, said: “We all know that for some people, the possibility of reconciliation is seen as a danger. There are those who are threatened by these dialogues. We, Israelis and Palestinians who have already paid the highest price to the conflict, will continue to present these values ​​to every teacher, student, and school that invites us. We are full of appreciation and respect for schools that do not succumb to wild and unbridled incitement and violence, and who do not shy away from the threats to silence this important educational enterprise.

We are especially grateful to our Palestinian members who courageously came to Israel to share their stories despite threats and hostile demonstrators. They fear for their lives and they go through checkpoints and long journeys to make the Dialogue Meetings possible.

To donate by check, please mail to:

American Friends of the Parents Circle
4 E 95th St 5C
New York, NY 10128

To donate by check, please mail to:

American Friends of the Parents Circle
4 E 95th St 5C
New York, NY 10128