Debate
Palestinian-Israeli Coexistence in the Middle East
- Somaya Bashir (Israël) and Houssam Khadra (Gaza)
- Date
- Tuesday 17 June 2025
- Time
- Explanation
- Doors open at 14:15. This meeting will be in English.
- Address
-
Kamerlingh Onnes Gebouw
Steenschuur 25
2311 ES Leiden - Room
- Cleveringazaal (C1.31)
This meeting will be in English.
A discussion with Somaya Bashir (Israël) and Houssam Khadra (Gaza)
The ongoing war between Israel and Palestine has been a hot topic for over a year and a half. The conflict is causing polarization and all kinds of protests at home and abroad. The consequences of the war are also clearly noticeable at Leiden University. During the past 20 months, we have been confronted with heated debates, sit-ins, demonstrations and occupations.
Multi-voiced perspective on (the consequences of) the war
The university wants to offer a platform for a multi-voiced perspective on (the consequences of) the war with a series of meetings. The first of these is on June 17, when we welcome guest speakers Somaya Bashir and Houssam Khadra. They will share their personal stories about living with war in Israel and Gaza and their activities for peace.
Somaya Bashir
Somaya Bashir is an Arab-Israeli Muslim, a mother, a teacher, and a social activist. She has been active in different organisations that promote social partnership between Arabs and Jews in Israel, including the We Have No Other Country-group (of which she is a founder) the Insan Association for the Rights of the Underprivileged Populations, the Women Wage Peace society (as a coordinator), and more recently in Ogen Le’Atid – a liberal movement advocating for social equality. Somaya advocates for Arabs as full-fledged Israeli citizens and she fights against racism and extremism in Israel.
Houssam Khadra
Houssam Khadra is a Gazan Palestinian, a father, an actor, and a journalist reporting from Gaza for an Egyptian newspaper. In his youth, Houssam followed Hamas- education. Now, he is a peace activist preaching against terror and extremism.
Open dialogue and an academic discussion
Somaya and Houssam will share their personal stories about living with war in Israel and Gaza and about their activities to promote peace, counter-extremism and coexistence. We have invited them to give an introduction, followed by an open dialogue and an academic discussion on realistic societal solutions for coexistence between the population groups of Israel and Palestine. After the personal stories of Somaya and Houssam, there will be room for questions and a discussion led by a moderator.
Mandatory registration and identification
All members of the LU academic community (including LUMC) are welcome. Registration is mandatory.
Your LU-card will be checked at the entrance. If you are at LUMC, please bring your LUMC-card and a personal ID. The walk-in starts at 14:15, the discussion at 14:30 hrs.