‘No one is born into hatred’: Kibbutz Be’eri massacre survivor urges compassion at joint Israeli-Palestinian ceremony

Israelis and Palestinians who have lost loved ones to the conflict, and in particular in the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led assault and the war in Gaza, are featured heavily in the joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day ceremony.

“This pain does not separate us, and no one is born into hatred. I believe that only through closeness, understanding, dialogue, and acceptance can we begin to see each other as human beings,” says Liel Fishbein, a survivor of the October 7 massacre in Kibbutz Be’eri who lost his sister Tchelet, in remarks to the crowd.

Liat Atzili, a survivor of the Nir Oz massacre who survived Hamas captivity in Gaza and whose husband Aviv was killed on October 7, addressed the audience, saying, “Freedom is a heavy burden, but it is the only force capable of bringing peace among people and building a just and moral society.”

In a pre-recorded video broadcast, Musa Khatawi, who joined the Parents Circle-Families Forum after losing members of his family during the war in Gaza, says, “Our struggle is not only for justice; it is for the right to live with dignity, without fear, and to end this cycle of violence. Now is the time to insist on ending the occupation and preventing more bloodshed.”

“We stand here today to say that our humanity can see the pain of others without turning a blind eye to our own suffering,” says Sayel Jaberin, a Palestinian member of Combatants for Peace, speaking from the Beit Jala ceremony in a livestream broadcast to the Jaffa ceremony and around the world.

Palestinians are participating in a 200-person ceremony in Beit Jala in the West Bank held in conjunction with the Jaffa ceremony, which they cannot attend as Israel revoked all entry permits to Palestinians following the October 7, 2023, onslaught.