The Editors at The Point:
In this issue, in lieu of our own commentary, we have decided to publish a conversation that took place on October 24th between Israeli and Palestinian activists. In the nearly two months since, the conflict has continued and deepened, notwithstanding the week-long “pause” for the exchange of hostages and political prisoners at the end of November. As we finish this issue, Israel’s aerial bombardment of Gaza and ground war are ongoing, resulting in a humanitarian crisis and the deaths of a reported sixteen thousand Palestinians, while Hamas and affiliated groups still hold 136 hostages abducted from Israel. Yet these developments have done little to alter the backdrop under which this dialogue was convened—a “very dark passage,” in the words of moderator Charles Lenchner—while only making even more urgent its central themes. We recommend it for many reasons: because the speakers’ understanding of the situation is extensive, nuanced and personal; because they are not addressing captive, convinced audiences but each other; because they are attempting, as they speak, to come to terms with both the possibilities and the limitations of their power; because the stakes for them are in no way symbolic or abstract; because they speak, credibly, as if their lives depend on what they say and do.
more here.