Former Israeli and Palestinian Fighters Tour U.S. to Promote Peace

Excerpts of talk by former Palestinian fighter Sulaiman Khatib, and cofounder of Combatants for Peace and former Israeli Air Force Reserves Capt. Yonatan Shapira, produced by Melinda Tuhus

As Palestinians continue to suffer and die under the policies of the Israeli government in Gaza and the West Bank, and as Israelis still suffer under the threat of suicide bombings, a group of former fighters from both sides have come together to put their own experience and suffering on the line to call for a non-violent solution to the decades-long Middle East conflict. The war veterans propose the creation of a viable Palestinian state to exist alongside Israel.

Two members of the group, Combatants for Peace, are currently on a speaking tour of the U.S. from Oct. 23 through Nov. 3, sponsored nationally by Faculty for Israeli-Palestinian Peace. Their second stop was Yale University, where they told their stories and then invited questions.

Between The Lines' Melinda Tuhus recorded the event and presents excerpts of their stories. We first hear from Sulaiman Khatib, a former Palestinian fighter, followed by Yonatan Shapira, a former captain in the Israeli Air Force Reserves and co-founder of Combatants for Peace.

Khatib and Shapira will be touring college campuses in the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast through Nov. 3rd. For more information, visit the group's website at www.combatantsforpeace.org.

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