Having once written a column in which I urged both the Israelis and the Palestinians to find “viable leaders committed to non-violence and able to articulate an authentically Gandhian vision for ending the conflict”, and now having written a column in this week’s magazine condemning suicide bombings from an Islamic point of view, I thought I’d point you in the direction of this piece in the Los Angeles Times, which highlights the non-violent protests of Mohammed Khatib and his West Bank supporters, who hope to rally others to a peaceful campaign for Palestinian statehood and an end to military occupation.
Will they succeed? So far, says the LA Times, fellow Palestinians seem “largely indifferent” and the Israelis — though they would never admit it! — aren’t keen either. The killer line:
He [Khatib] believes Israel is trying to crush non-violent activists because it would rather take on an armed insurgency.
Read the full piece here: it’s both depressing and inspiring, in equal measure.