A Call for Peace in the Middle East

Each year the International Day of Peace (IDP) is observed around the world on 21 September. The UN General Assembly has declared this as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, through observing 24 hours of non-violence and cease-fire. Never has our world needed peace more.

This year’s theme is Actions for Peace: Our Ambition for the #GlobalGoals. It is a call to action that recognizes our individual and collective responsibility to foster peace. Fostering peace contributes to the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals will create a culture of peace for all.

In this important day, we should recall that on 2^nd August we marked 100 years since the Shimon Peres’ birth, a founding parent of Israel whose lifelong dedication to his country and peace. The new regional context can help to implement the Shimon Peres’ vision of a “New Middle East” that is based on cooperation rather the animosity. Peres voiced that everyone should “Let’s dream in BIG! Let’s dream on PEACE!

Despite the ruthless wars in the Middle East, there has been also important peace landmarks, such as the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty (1979) signed by the Prime Minister Menachem Begin and President Anwar Sadat or the Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty (1994) signed by Isaac Rabin, Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat.

In August 2020 it was announced the Abraham Accords, which normalized diplomatic relations between the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Israel. The United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres applauded this initiative as an opportunity for advancing in the peace agenda. This historic accord put another stone in the endless aspiration of peace in the Middle East since the birth of Israel.

We cannot change the past, but we can reshape the future. Young people and new generations have the opportunity to create a happier, better and vibrant future in the Middle East, in which all the countries, in particular Israel and Palestine, can exercise its fundamental right to live in peace and security. This brings me to the David Ben-Gurion’s reflection when he said “We wanted to create a new life, not the life that exists”.