The Gaza War with Breaking the Silence's Avner Gvaryahu

This Is How We Fought in Gaza:
Discussing the Aftermath of Protective Edge
with 
Avner Gvaryahu, Director of Public Outreach, Breaking the Silence
&
Hemda Arad, Co-Founder of Isha L'Isha, one of Israel's largest women's organizations

Note new start time: Thursday, June 11 at 7:30 – 9:00 pm
Hosted by Temple Beth Am, 2632 NE 80th Street, Seattle
Cosponsorsed by Kol HaNeshamah

RSVPs required -- registration closes day-of at 4:00 pm

This event will be videotaped – attendance implies consent to be filmed.

During Israel’s recent elections, the issue of the Palestinian territories was barely discussed, despite a brutal war in Gaza just months before. For Israelis, the territories exist beyond a wall, both actual and psychological.

But this month, a New Israel Fund grantee of former soldiers broke that silence in a new report featuring over 60 soldiers and officers who personally attest to greatly loosened rules of war and its consequences on civilian casualties in Gaza. “Breaking the Silence” is an example of Israeli organizations making every effort to ensure that human rights remain in Israel’s public discourse.

Avner Gvaryahu, a member of Breaking the Silence and former IDF officer, will share the findings of their recently-published report on last summer’s Gaza war, This is How We Fought, and its implications for human rights, security, and the rule of law in Israel.

About Us

Avner Gvaryahu is the Director of Public Outreach for Breaking the Silence. He served as a paratrooper in the Israel Defense Forces in 2004-2007 and became involved with Breaking the Silence shortly after his discharge. Born in a Religious Zionist family in Rechovot, Avner holds a BA in Social Work from Tel Aviv University and lives with his wife in Tel Aviv.

Breaking the Silence is a human rights organization committed to ending the occupation. It has collected nearly 1,000 testimonials from soldiers and vets on the occupation and military actions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It also conducts tours of the West Bank, including Hebron, a Palestinian city that has been a frequent flash point for violence. More at www.breakingthesilence.org.il.

The New Israel Fund is the leading organization committed to equality and democracy for all Israelis. Widely credited with building Israeli progressive civil society, we have provided millions of dollars to more than 850 organizations since our inception in 1979. More at www.nif.org.

Hemda Arad is an Israeli living in Seattle, a co-founder of one of Israel's largest women's groups, and a member of the NIF's Pacific Northwest Regional Council, which includes Sarah Boden, Jon Bridge, Zehava Chen-Levy, Allen and Carol Gown, Rabbi Anson Laytner, Sara Litt, Prof. Joel Migdal, Lisa Orlick-Salka, Prof. Eric Orlin, Prof. Noam Pianko, Simcha Shtull, and Rabbi Daniel Weiner. 

Event Location