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STAND UP FOR PEACE 2

PEACE PRE SCHOOL RECEIVES CHILDREN OF PEACE GRANT

SEVEN NEW TRUSTEES JOIN CHILDREN OF PEACE BOARD

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: AGM  JUNE 26th 2010

MAHMOUD JABARI WRITES ABOUT HOPE & OF PEACE

TWO NEW GROUPS JOIN US - THE STEERING CENTRE FOR DEMOCRACY (BETHLEHEM) & BETHELEHEM STAR CHARITABLE SOCIETY

EVENTS COMMITTEE NEWS

CROSSING QALANDIYA LAUNCH IS GREAT SUCCESS

ABRAHAM FUND, NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR THE CHILD AND WESAL RECEIVE OUR LATEST GRANTS

YASMIN LEVY - GOODWILL AMBASSADOR HOLDS INSPIRATIONAL WORKSHOP

EVENTS COMMITTEE - RICHARD CLIFFORD TELLS US ABOUT THEIR WORK

WE APPOINT A FUNDRAISER

STEINER SCHOOLS JOIN US

CROSSING QALANDIYA - WRITERS DONATE TO US

OUR WINTER APPEAL 2009-10 SCHOOLS AID  GIVING CHILDREN A CHANCE

SCHOOL BAGS FOR GAZA

ZOE HELLER & YOTAM SOLOMAN: NEW FRIENDS OF CHILDREN OF PEACE

JOIN OUR GROWING FACEBOOK GROUP

SIR DEREK JACOBI BECOMES PATRON OF CHILDREN OF PEACE

SHIRAA ORGANISATION JOINS CHILDREN OF PEACE

AFFILIATE FOCUS: THE JEZREEL VALLEY MUSIC CENTER

CORK STREET CONTEMPORARY ART OPEN PRIVATE VIEW IS GREAT SUCCESS

TRUSTEES AGREE MAJOR CHANGE FOR CHILDREN

LOOK OUT FOR OUR FACEBOOK FAN PAGE

MUSICIANS FOR PEACE TEAM UP WITH US

CORK STREET OPEN EXHIBITION - ARTISTS SHOW UP FOR
CHILDREN OF PEACE

THREE GROUPS RECEIVE OUR SMALL INTERNATIONAL GRANT

ISLA BLAIR, SIMON CALLOW, JULIAN GLOVER AND JANINE MARTIN
JOIN AS FRIENDS

NEW AFFILIATE -
MAOF SCHOOL, ISRAEL

OUR 10K LONDON RUNNERS
EXCEED PERSONAL BEST

67 WEST BANK CHILDREN BENEFIT FROM THE 2008 WINTER APPEAL

ALL THE WORLD'S A STAGE -
A GREAT SUCCESS

UNIVERSITIES AND STUDENT GROUPS SUPPORT CHILDREN OF PEACE

EXHIBITION AT LUDLOW

PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR GIVES US
FULL SUPPORT AND JOINS AS FRIEND

 

MATT LUCAS, PHILIP GLENISTER & AMELIA QUINLAN - NEW FRIENDS

 

SAHAR SHALALLDA AND DEJITSU WASSI - RECEIVE THE ABIR ARAMIN GIRLS' EDUCATIONAL BURSARY

 

STAND UP FOR PEACE - A BRILLIANT EVENING - A FUNDRAISING TRIUMPH!

 

NEW AFFILIATE - THE PEACE PRE-SCHOOL AT THE YMCA, JERUSALEM

 

ALL THE WORLD'S A STAGE - JUNE 2009 - IS A SELL-OUT SUCCESS

 

10K LONDON RUN - SUPPORT OUR TEAM

 

CORK STREET - CONTEMPORARY ART SHOW TO RAISE FUNDS THIS AUGUST

 

THE AMERICAN FUND FOR CHARITIES CHOOSES US FOR NEW WEBSITE

 

COUNTESS OF CHICHESTER, SHEIKH MANASRAH, MANAL TIMRAZ JOIN US

 

STAND UP FOR PEACE: A NIGHT OF COMEDY ON 23RD MAY

 

OUR 2009 ABIR ARAMIN GIRLS' BURSARY FOR ISRAELI AND PALESTINIAN GIRLS

 

WESAL - GAZA SCHOOLS JOIN CHILDREN OF PEACE AS NEW AFFILIATE

 

AFFILIATE FOCUS: HAND IN HAND FOR ARAB-JEWISH EDUCATION

 

CORK STREET - CONTEMPORARY ART SHOW TO RAISE FUNDS THIS AUGUST

 

CHILDREN OF PEACE WINS FULL

SUPPORT FROM

THE PRESIDENT OF FRANCE

 

BRITISH ACTRESS SAMANTHA MORTON JOINS CHILDREN OF PEACE AS A FRIEND

 

"ANGEL OF MOSTAR" SALLY BECKER BECOMES GOODWILL AMBASSADOR TO CHILDREN OF PEACE

 

KING’S ACADEMY, JORDAN TO BE KEY PARTNER OF CHILDREN OF PEACE

 

ISRAELI AND PALESTINIAN RACING DRIVERS RACE FOR PEACE

 

HELPING THE CHILDREN - SAINT JOHN

OF JERUSALEM EYE HOSPITAL GROUP

 

AFFILIATE FOCUS – HANNAH WEITZER LOOKS AT THE WORK OF WINDOWS

CORINNE BAILEY RAE GIVES STRONG SUPPORT TO CHILDREN OF PEACE

JEWISH SIXTH FORMERS CHOOSE CHILDREN OF PEACE AS THEIR 2009 CHARITY

BORIS JOHNSON - THE MAYOR OF LONDON GIVES HIS SUPPORT FOR OUR WORK

CHILDREN OF PEACE SETS UP NEW FACEBOOK PAGE

AMERICAN DONORS CAN NOW GET TAX BREAKS IF YOU GIVE TO CHILDREN OF PEACE

2009 - THE UNITED NATIONS YEAR OF THE CHILD

GORDON BROWN SENDS PERSONAL MESSAGE OF SUPPORT

HELENA BONHAM CARTER
TIM BURTON
AND SOPHIE ELLIS BEXTOR
JOIN AS FRIENDS  

GOODWILL AMBASSADORS MANSOOR & VALERIE IJAZ ON
WHY THEY ENDORSE OUR WORK  

LATEST LONDON EVENT A SUCCESS

VICE-PRESIDENT
JOE BIDEN SUPPORTS
CHILDREN OF PEACE

DONATIONS TO FIVE REGIONAL PARTNERS

BURLESQUE DINNER GALA

INTERNATIONAL STAR YASMIN LEVY BECOMES GOODWILL AMBASSADOR

 HADASSAH UK JOINS US

THREE LEADING ACADEMICS
JOIN AS FRIENDS

TEAM CHILDREN OF PEACE TRIUMPH

GAZA AID SHIPMENT REACHES THE CHILDREN

AMERICAN SENATOR JOSEPH BIDEN SUPPORTS US

HOUSE OF GRACE JOINS CHILDREN OF PEACE

HEREFORD CREAM TEA DELIGHTS

10K TEAM RAISES MONEY FOR CHILDREN OF PEACE

ETI CASTRO AND SAMACH ZAHOUT

JEFF GOLDBLUM MEETS SIR DEREK JACOBI IN LONDON

FOUR NEW PREFERRED PARTNERS

CHILD BEGGARS IN ISRAEL

BASSAM ARAMIN BECOMES CHILDREN OF PEACE GOODWILL AMBASSADOR

DOMINIC MARTIN BECOMES SPORTS COORDINATOR - MADELEINE McGIVERN OUR VOLUNTEERS COORDINATOR

JULIA SAWALHA JOINS CHILDREN OF PEACE AS A FRIEND

MESSAGE FROM TONY BLAIR
March 2008

EMMA THOMPSON, GREG WISE, IMELDA STAUNTON AND JIM CARTER BECOME FRIENDS OF THE CHARITY March 2008

BRITISH ARTIST HOLDS CHARITY NIGHT March 2008

RICHARD CLIFFORD ELECTED TRUSTEE

ABIR ARAMIN 2008 SCHOLARSHIP

GAZA EMERGENCY APPEAL SENDS AID December 2007

HEREFORD FOOTBALL CLUB SUPPORT December 2007

SOCCER SCHOOLS UPDATE

STARS OF STAGE AND SCREEN ATTEND THE FIRST LONDON EVENT November 2007

OUR GAZA FRIENDS CALL ON CHILDREN OF PEACE TO HELP October 2007

CHILDREN OF PEACE SUPPORTS ONEVOICE DAY OF PEACE
October 2007

MIDDLE EAST DELEGATION REPORTS TO DISTINGUISHED GUESTS April 2007

CHILDREN OF PEACE SOCCER TEAM WIN WORLD CUP! March 2007

CHILDREN OF PEACE DELELGATION MEETS 13 ISRAELI AND PALESTINIAN GROUPS March 2007

CHILDREN OF PEACE REMEMBERS ABIR ARAMIN January 2007

BIG LOTTERY FUND AWARDS FIRST INTERNATIONAL GRANT TO CHILDREN OF PEACE December 2006

CHILDREN OF PEACE ENJOYS A SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH Nov. 2006

PATRON:
MADONNA
DAME JUDI DENCH

ROYAL PATRON:
HH THE BEGUM
AGA KHAN

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CHILDREN OF PEACE DELEGATION MEETS 13 ISRAELI AND PALESTINIAN GROUPS March 2007

 

Between March 7th –13th March 2007, the Children of Peace Delegation - Secretary, John Guyatt, Treasurer, Claire Packham and Administrator, Nicole Pritchard Smith, visited Israel and the Palestinian Territories. In what proved to be an inspirational and moving field visit, the team met up with up to 13 different Israeli and Palestinian groups as John Guyatt reports: The Delegation arrived in Israel from a cold and chilly London to be greeted by the warmth and a springtime explosion of blossom and wild flowers. Perhaps hope for peace is harder to find in Israel and the Occupied Territories, but during our recent visit there we were impressed and moved by the energy and the vision of so many people, both Palestinian and Israeli, working to keep alive a hope for a better future for all.

 

Organised with superb efficiency by Kassim Baddarni, our Regional Operations Manager, the Children of Peace Delegation held meetings from one end of the country to the other with a range of groups from all faiths and backgrounds seeking to help Israeli and Palestinian children come together and to build bridges between peoples. From the ultra modern centre of Tel Aviv to the golden sandstone of neighbouring Jaffa and from the green valleys of Galilee to the rocks and sand of the Negev, we visited many groups and were met with extraordinary goodwill. We were shown health programmes, music schools, dialogue forums and football teams where Israelis and Palestinians are striving to help Jews, Christians and Muslims know one another better and comfort children living in a world that is often frightening and confusing for them.

 

Everywhere we went, there was the wonderful hospitality that Jews and Palestinians share – and everywhere the cardamom flavoured coffee, the mint lemonade, the sticky cakes and the mezze were a constant temptation!

 

Nobody can underestimate the real political problems after the failure of the Oslo Peace Process and the start of the Second Intifada. In Jerusalem the rich ethnic and religious mix of Palestinian shopkeepers, religious Jews and Christian tourists share the winding alleys and squares of the Old City but there is still tension and the Temple Mount was closed to tourists when we visited. And it is this that makes the work of these good men and women, Jewish, Muslim and Christian, so vital by breaking down stereotypes and insisting upon a common humanity. Al Quds in East Jerusalem promoting dialogue and civic society and the Jaffa Institute working with disadvantaged Jewish and Arab children are just two of the many organisations working for children and young people from all backgrounds.

 

To see young mixed football teams in pre-game huddles in a new town in the south, a Russian Jewish lady teaching piano to a Palestinian girl outside Haifa or the interfaith meeting place in the Palestinian-Jewish village of Neve Shalom is to recognise that hope, like the wild flowers now springing from the rocky soil, is sometimes where you least expect it.

 

Israeli Jews and Palestinians each have their painful narratives: we met those who had lost a Palestinian brother, a Jewish son. But what we also saw were men and women who know there has to be another way. As one said “Just add the letter “b"and “r"to “other"and we shall have a future."What we hope to have achieved from our visit is a far better understanding of the work that these groups do and a real knowledge of what they are achieving. Our hope, too, is that what we have learned will strengthen our bid for a major Lottery grant that would do so much to improve the lives of children and to bring peoples together.”

 

 

The Children of Peace Delegation used the visit to source research information and data in preparation for a Feasibility Study prior to seeking funds from leading grant providers. In April 2007, the Trustees will be holding a Report Back session at the House of Commons, London for the Trustees, Goodwill Ambassadors and invited guests.

 

 

CHILDREN OF PEACE DELEGATION DIARY

 

Thursday 8th March

 

Haifa: the Leo Baeck Center who’s Community Center provides a base for Palestinians and Israelis of all backgrounds

 

Galilee Society where over lunch we heard about their programmes for extending health care to Palestinian Israelis.

 

On the hillside nearby we went to the Mar Elias School, an impressive High School that offers a fine education to Christian and Muslim Palestinians.

 

Then to the Beit Almusica, a music school that gives tuition in both Western and traditional Arab instruments.

 

Finally to Araba and Al Taj where Kassim showed us his center for health care amongst Israeli Palestinians.

 

Friday 9th March

 

We drove to the south of the country to see the Children of Peace football teams training and playing with their Israeli and Palestinian coaches: a marvellous and heartening demonstration of children playing together oblivious of the conflicts that divide their parents!

 

Saturday 10th March

 

East Jerusalem and Al Quds: amazing young men working to keep Palestinian youths out of jail and working with the Peres Foundation to create the football teams we had seen on Friday.

 

Later, we met Aziz, whose brother had died following time in Israeli Army custody and whose work for Parents Circle is inspirational.

 

Sunday 11th March:

 

Day off! Trip to Jerusalem, buy sumac, visit Church of the Holy Sepulchre, drink freshly squeezed orange juice……

 

Monday 12th March:

 

The Peres Centre for Peace who, with Al Quds, are our partners in the football project.

 

One Voice in Rothschild Boulevard ( marvellous Bauhaus buildings…it’s a UN World heritage site… ) where a young team is building dialogue between communities.

 

That afternoon to see Aaron of the Israeli side of Parents Circle: his son was killed in Lebanon days before he was due to finish his military service. Like Aziz, inspirational.

 

Then we visit the Jaffa Institute in the older, more run down part of Jaffa where deprivation, drugs and crime affect both Jews and Palestinians. In an old house, Jewish and Palestinian children are being helped with reading and writing….and are having fun! A wonderful, positive atmosphere.

 

Tuesday 13th March:

 

Neve Shalom-Wahat al Salam - where fifty Palestinian and Jewish families live in harmony. Founded by a Dominican Father on land given by the Order, it is testimony to the power of a shared humanity to overcome prejudice.

 

THE ARCHIVES