The democratic Israeli civil society - one year after October 7, 2023

October 7, 2023 was and is a traumatic experience for the entire Israeli society. Never before since the founding of the state so many Israelis have been killed, injured and kidnapped in a single day. Never before in the conflict with the Palestinians has there been such a loss of control by the army in parts of the country. The massacre by Hamas and other Islamist groups therefore continues to dominate the daily lives of people in Israel today - one year after the attack.

Those affected in the south and north of Israel, who have had to leave their homes and villages, who have lost relatives and who fear for the lives of the hostages, feel abandoned by the Israeli government. Civil society groups are providing practical help on the ground: they provide internally displaced persons with the bare necessities, offer psychological care and support the hostages' relatives. In many cases, these are the same civil society groups that protested before October 7, 2023 for months against the judicial overhaul of Benjamin Netanyahu's ultra-nationalist government. 

Critics of the Netanyahu government accuse it of having done little for the people affected by the Hamas massacre and the war since October 7. An unprecedented number of Palestinians have been killed, injured and displaced in the Gaza Strip. The war against Hamas has reduced the rocket fire from the Gaza Strip. But most of the hostages still need to be freed. Netanyahu is waging a war without any political plan for the day after, a war that has become an end in itself in order to keep the government and the prime minister in power, is a frequent accusation. 

All of this poses enormous challenges for the democratic forces of Israeli civil society. On the one hand, there have once again been large demonstrations against the government and in favour of a hostage deal. On the other hand, there are currently hardly any political alternatives with the prospect of a majority in the Knesset. 

On the occasion of the first anniversary of the Hamas massacre, we want to discuss with Jewish and Palestinian activists and experts from Israel about the situation of the democratic civil society in Israel one year after October 7, 2023. What impact do civil society groups have on a society characterized by trauma, fear, confusion and polarization? What role does the issue of the kidnapped hostages play? How do Israeli activists view the war in Gaza and the increasing escalation in the West Bank and Lebanon? How do they deal with the hostility and defamation campaigns of right-wing Israeli organizations? What support does democratic civil society receive and want from abroad? How has October 7, 2023 changed the prospects for a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

Welcome:

• Jan Philipp Albrecht, Co-President of Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung
• Hillel Assaf, New Israel Fund Germany

With:

• Shira Ben-Sasson Furstenberg, Associate Director of New Israel Fund in Israel
• Yonatan Zeigen, From Grief to Peace Activism
• Shira Livne, Association for Civil Rights in Israel - ACRI
• Yeela Raanan Livnat, Regional Council for Unrecognized Villages
• Sasha Misheritzky, Tzedek Centers
• Lina Qasem-Hassan, Physicians for Human Rights Israel - PHRI

Moderation: Christian Meier, Correspondent Frankfurter Allgemeine, Tel Aviv

Language: English with simultaneous translation into German. 

The event is organized in cooperation with New Israel Fund Germany. 

Information:        
Bauke Baumann
Referent Israel, Palästina, Jordanien und Iran
Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung 
E baumann@boell.de
T +49(0)285 34 -321

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