Bassam Aramin and Rami Elhanan

“We do not talk about peace, we make peace.”
—Colum McCann, Apeirogon

Rami Elhanan is Israeli and Bassam Aramin is Palestinian, living close to each other, but existing in separate worlds. Their lives were shattered when their daughters Smadar and Abrir were killed, one by a Hamas suicide attack in the center of Jerusalem in 1997, and the other by an Israeli policeman as she was leaving school in 2007. Faced with these terrible circumstances, instead of giving in to hatred and violence, both decided to join forces to bet on dialogue and work together for peace, human rights for all and the end of the occupation through the association The Parents Circle - Families Forum, with which they promote reconciliation between the two communities. Rami and Bassam, who have become close friends, now share their experiences around the world and say that “the only way forward is to talk to each other, understand each other's point of view and make concessions”. Their story was also picked up by the writer Colum McCann, who told it in his book Apeirogon (Published in Catalan by L'Altra Editorial and in Spanish by Seix Barral, 2021) and thus made it internationally known.

After more than a year of war, in this conversation, Bassam Aramin and Rami Elhanan talk with the journalist and political scientist and expert in peace processes, Jordi Armadans, about the transformative power of empathy, friendship and the needs and options for building a future of peace and coexistence.

This activity is a collaboration between the CCCB and the Institut Català Internacional per la Pau (ICIP).