The Other Voice, a group of Israeli Peace activists, are advocating for their government to end its siege on Gaza. This organisation is dedicated to changing the status quo between Israel and Palestine, working towards a peaceful resolution to the war. Furthermore, The Other Voice members want to end the cycle of violence that has been occurring and rebuild both countries. The Israeli’s and Palestinians have been fighting on and off for Gaza since the end of World War 2. After a war in 1967, Israel occupied several Palestinian areas and Gaza. In 2005, they left Gaza but after Hamas won elections, Israel returned and has since held Gaza under a blockade.

This blockade has Israel controlling the borders and limiting the people who can enter and leave Gaza. Due to the control of the borders, not many goods can get into Gaza, the Palestinians are not eating as much food as they used to, a large number of people are unemployed and there are often power cuts. Rockets are regularly fired from Gaza into Israel and there have been several Israeli offensives which have resulted in large numbers of casualties.

In order to end this violence, The Other Voice is strongly advocating for relationships between Israelis and Palestinians to be fostered and improved. The group has proposed that reconciliation meetings with the Palestinians be organised in Gaza, with Eric Yellin, leader of The Other Voice, saying that

“[The Other Voice] is trying to establish a future reality between Israelis and Palestinians, and [they] believe that Palestinians deserve an equal opportunity to have a prosperous life in Gaza by ending the siege that makes life in Gaza unbearable.”

Yellin wants full peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, acknowledging that incremental steps are necessary for this process to occur. He acknowledged that this process needs to be initiated by someone, which could either be Palestinians, Israelis or international intermediaries like the French or Egyptians.

Hamas leaders do not oppose the idea of a long term ceasefire with the Israeli side as they too wish for peace on both sides of the border. Furthermore, Hamas leader Ghazi al-Hamad expressed his agreement with Yellin, reiterating that the region does not need another war. But he has also acknowledged that unless the political and security issues are solved, this peace will be impossible to come by. However, he also expressed his hopes that The Other Voice will be able to create a peaceful environment and attitude towards the Palestinians in Israel. Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas leader said that

“the peaceful efforts by [The Other Voice] could represent a positive message and the beginning of positive transformation that would save the region from unpredictable dire consequences.”

The Other Voice represents a positive message for peace and signals an opportunity for both Palestinians and Israelis to work together in order to end the conflict which has impacted these countries for decades. If a more substantive move towards reconciliation is made, the peace process may be able to produce positive outcomes and end the war that has affected so many people.