Yachad aims to provide the British Jewish community with in-depth education about the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Our diverse range of speakers offers wide-ranging, nuanced knowledge, perspectives and lived experience, helping audiences to better understand the conflict, why it continues, and what it would take to resolve it.
In person sessions
We can arrange speakers to visit your synagogue or community. Our speakers include both visitors from Israel and Palestine, as well as UK-based speakers, many of whom are based in London.
In-person sessions are available in London and, potentially, elsewhere in the UK. They can take place on weekdays, Sundays or on Shabbat, subject to availability.
Topics include: personal stories from Israelis and Palestinians whose lives have been affected by the 7 October attack and the war in Gaza; the situation in the West Bank, including settlement expansion and settler violence; the situation in Gaza; and the strengths of Israel’s civil society.
If you would like to find out more, please get in touch with us by using this form:
Get in TouchOnline Speakers
Speakers are online direct from Israel. We recommend about 1 hour for an online session.
How to achieve long-term peace and security for Israel with Omer Zanany
Omer Zanany will speak about President Trump’s peace plan, how it is progressing and the steps needed to achieve genuine peace and security for Israelis. Omer is author of the Israeli Initiative, crafted in 2024 with input from a group of top-tier diplomatic and security experts with decades of experience, which offers a three-phase plan to turn the tragedy of October 7th and the ensuing war into a political turning point between Israel, the Palestinians, and the Arab World.
Dr. (Lt. Col. res.) Omer Zanany is a former policy and national security advisor to the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In his previous roles in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) he dealt with Israeli policy on Palestinian issues and political negotiations with the Palestinians. He currently heads the Foreign and Security Policy Team of the Mitvim Institute and the Berl Katznelson Center, and leads Mitvim’s Israeli-Palestinian Peacemaking Program.
Beyond the Ceasefire: What’s Next for Gaza? with Gisha
What is the situation on the ground in Gaza now? What does it mean for the future of the region? And how did we get to this point? Join Gisha for a chance to learn more about what is happening in Gaza, Israel’s responsibilities, and what we and other Israeli human rights organisations are petitioning for.
Gisha (meaning both “access” and “approach” in Hebrew) is an Israeli NGO founded in 2005, whose goal is to protect the freedom of movement of Palestinians, especially Gaza residents. Gisha achieves its mission through a mixture of public and legal advocacy work, using Israeli and human rights law.
Promoting the Two-State Solution, Resisting Annexation with Peace Now
Since October 7th, the Netanyahu-Smotrich-Ben Gvir government has continued and accelerated settlement expansion, establishment of new illegal outposts and provocations in the West Bank. In this session, we will delve into the dynamics behind these actions, highlighting their impact on the prospects for a two-state solution. We will outline Peace Now’s vision for achieving a two-state solution and discuss the critical role of the Israeli peace camp in promoting meaningful progress and advancing the cause of a two-state solution.
Peace Now is the longest-standing Israeli NGO dedicated to promoting a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through advocacy for a two-state solution and ending the occupation. It also systematically monitors and reports on developments related to Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Rabbis for Human Rights
Rabbis for Human Rights works to advance the value of the sanctity of all human life and to protect Palestinian communities suffering from the rising settler violence in the West Bank. Our vision, rooted in Jewish tradition and texts, is to create hope for a peaceful future and an end to suffering. We can offer two talks:
- A rabbinic response to settler violence
- Jewish religious radicalism, its theological roots and the threat it presents
Rabbis for Human Rights (RHR) is an Israeli organisation founded in 1988, active in three main areas: work within and about the Occupied Palestinian Territories; work to promote social and economic justice within Israel; and activities in the fields of education and interreligious dialogue. RHR is guided by the richness of Jewish tradition, and by the call to advance the dignity and protect the rights of all individuals which are found at its heart.
Heritage sites in the West Bank and their place in the conflict with Alon Arad
Heritage sites have had a special role in the Zionist nation-building enterprise since Israel’s beginnings. But over the past 25 years, Israeli passion for the biblical past has been refashioned by the extremist settler-right into an archaeology anchored in biblical literalism. Alon will outline how archaeological sites have been used as a justification for creating and expanding settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, presenting an obstacle to peace.
Alon Arad is an archaeologist and the Executive Director of Emek Shaveh – an Israeli NGO working to defend heritage rights. We monitor ways in which heritage sites in Israel and the occupied territories are being used to limit land uses, displace individuals and communities and disconnect them from their land and heritage. We work to challenge discriminatory policies and advocate for a shared heritage approach to the sites and monuments in Israel and Palestine.
Virtual Tour of Hebron with Breaking the Silence and Youth Against Settlements
Join us on an interactive virtual tour exploring the processes that led to Hebron’s “ghost town”. We will offer a glimpse of the daily reality in Hebron from the point of view of both Israel Defence Force soldiers who served there, and young local
Palestinian activists. The tour explores the consequences of the policy of separation and the military presence in the city.
Breaking the Silence is an organisation of veteran combatants from the Israeli military that aims to expose the reality of the daily interactions between soldiers and the Palestinian civilian population in the Occupied Territories. They stimulate public debate about the price paid for a reality in which young soldiers face a civilian population on a daily basis and are engaged in the control of that population’s everyday life.
Youth Against Settlements (YAS) is a Hebron-based nonviolent direct-action group. Formed in 2008, it maintains a youth education and meeting centre which is used to empower and educate Palestinians, especially youth, to use nonviolent action, media, and advocacy work.
If you’re interested in an online session, please get in touch with us by using this form:
Get in Touch