I BELIEVE THE CHILDREN ARE OUR FUTURE :

Mideast Teenagers Answer Questions (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, August 11, 2002)

The violence between Israelis and Palestinians -- bombings, assassinations, incursions -- makes peace in the Middle East seem elusive at best.

Still, peace is what many say they want more than anything. They include Nada Dajani, a 17-year-old Palestinian, and Maya Zamir, a 15-year-old Israeli.

The two young women were among a group visiting a camp in Maine this month in search of understanding between the two sides, and perhaps even solutions. Their two-week session, which ended Sunday, was the work of Seeds of Peace, a nonprofit, nonpolitical organization that helps young people from regions of conflict learn peacemaking skills. Camp activities included group discussions and an adventure challenge in which campers learned to rely on and trust each other.

Some U.S. students posed questions for Nada and Maya at the AP's request. The Americans are participating in the Help Yourself Programs at Wisconsin's Beloit College -- a long-term program that helps minority and low-income youth prepare for college. Workshops they have attended included discussions on the Middle East. [...]

From Benjamin Butz, age 15:

Q: Do you see an end to the conflict? [...]

Maya: I hope the conflict will be solved so that my children in the future will not need to suffer. For this conflict to end, there needs to be an agreement between the two sides. But for this to happen, both sides need to want the peace with all their heart. I know that I want the peace with all my heart and soul so I can live in peace with my fellow campers not only in camp but also in our countries. [...]

Nada: I want to live in peace more than anything. I think that I can live with Jews under a Palestinian state. But as long as they want an Israeli state for their own and we want to retrieve our Palestinian state, there will not be an exit unless we were to divide the land into two states.

First let me confess that I rearranged those answers, but Mike Daley sent this and even though he'd warned me I still had to read Nada's answer a couple times to convince myself it says what it seems to say. That's a teenage girl at a peace camp essentially saying that Israel has to be taken over by Palestine before she'll live with Jews in peace. Posted by Orrin Judd at August 11, 2002 9:22 PM