‘It destroyed my heart.’

‘Don’t watch the videos.They will traumatize you.’

‘The majority of Israelis, and themajority of Palestinians, don’t acknowledge each other’s pain.’

‘If I said the truth, it wouldbe hard for her.’

‘They say nothing. They know it is genocide.’

The Peace Activists Divided by Oct. 7

By Susan Dominus

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They Worked Together as Peace Activists. Oct. 7 Changed Everything.

Tamar Shamir and Mohamed Abu Jafar tried for years to bring Jews and Palestinians together. Now they wonder if they ever understood each other.

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By Susan Dominus

Dec. 14, 2023, 4:46 p.m. ET

“I feel betrayed on such a deep level.” Tamar Shamir read the message on her phone in surprise. Another followed: “I just want to puke.” Shamir, a 53-year-old peace activist, was at her home not far from Haifa, in northern Israel, on Oct. 8, the day after Hamas’s deadly attack. Already half-mad from grief, Shamir grew agitated as more angry messages streamed in, and other recipients signaled their agreement by adding heart emojis. Shamir was checking in on a WhatsApp group of young adult Israelis, members of a program Shamir often worked with called Young Ambassadors for Peace. Many of them had attended a summer camp that Shamir co-directs for teenagers from Israel and the West Bank, some of whom have lost loved ones to the decades-long conflict. They had compared sunburns at the beach, belted out songs from “Frozen” on karaoke night, stayed up late laughing, weeping and sharing stories of their respective losses. Now the Israeli WhatsApp group was awash with hostility toward their Palestinian friends.