In answering a question about seeking revenge for a horrible wrong,
the great humanitarian, Mahatma Ghandi said "an eye for an eye only
ends up making the whole world blind."
The world has watched in either in angst or cold detachment at the
never-ending eye for an eye conflict impacting the people of Israel
and Palestine, a turmoil that does not appear to be solvable by
politicians. From afar, it appears this conflict will not end until
the whole world is blind. After reading "I Shall Not Hate", my
perspective has changed, and I now think hope will prevail. This
hope for peace is not based in the words or deeds by political
leaders, but from examples of the Palestinian and Israeli people
themselves, such as Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish (and his Israeli and
Palestinian friends and supporters), and their efforts to create a
peace through education, understanding and taking peaceful action.
In this memoir, Izzeldin Abuelaish tells his fascinating story,
from his birth in a Gaza refugee camp, his youth and overcoming
poverty to becoming a doctor living in Gaza, and working in a
hospital in Israel. 2009 was a year of anguish, with Dr. Abuelaish
losing his wife to cancer, and then having three of his eight
children taken away by unnecessary tank shelling.
If you have viewed the Israeli-Palestine conflict in a state of
cold detachment, there is another reason to read "I Shall Not
Hate". The book helped improve my understanding of the situation
impacting Palestine and Israel, but the story also engages
emotions, tugging on the heart strings for empathy and compassion.
The narrative is riveting, especially the sequence of detail during
January 2009 events, when the Israelis launched a 23 day assault on
the Gaza strip. A warning to the reader, it is hard to even imagine
the horror this man must have felt on the evening of January 16,
2009 when an Israeli tank shelled the apartment where the Abuelaish
family lived, killing three of his daughters, Bissan, Mayar, and
Aya, and his niece Noor, in their bedroom. Another daughter,
Shatha, was badly injured. The post blast description of the
bedroom is graphic and emotive.
Dr. Abuelaish is a remarkable man of commitment and courage. His
reaffirmation of faith, after the death of his daughters, and his
new commitment to give meaning to their lives after their passing,
with messages and life lessons on forgiveness, hope and love, is
truly heroic. Mahatma Ghandi also said "The weak can never forgive.
Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." There are no stronger
humans than Izzeldin Abuelaish.
Dr. Abuelaish lays out some ways for us all to get involved in the
peace process. In honour of his daughters, he has established a new
Foundation, "Daughters for Life", an organization that will provide
scholarships for girls and women living in the Middle East.