Israeli Jews and Arabs Take a Stand By Kissing for Peace and Love

By Anna Gragert on January 14, 2016

In the name of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Israel's Ministry of Education recently banned author Dorit Rabinyan's Borderline–because it's a love story featuring an Israeli translator and a Palestinian artist. In response, magazine Time Out Tel Aviv created a project establishing that love can rise above this conflict. They gathered together six Israeli, Jewish-Arab couples and asked them to do one thing in front of the camera: kiss. Some couples knew each other, while others were strangers. To add to the diversity shown in the video, both same-sex and opposite-sex pairs were included. While the set was simplistic and the command straightforward, what ended up happening was profoundly beautiful.

Though it was awkward at first, all couples soon became comfortable with one another and allowed their interaction to challenge the idea that Israeli Jews and Arabs cannot get along. While addressing the meaningful video in a statement, Time Out‘s editors mentioned that the video was released after a deadly shooting in a Tel Aviv bar that killed two and left eight injured. They explained, “All this gratuitous hatred is not good for us, so we decided to balance a little bit with the ‘extreme other side,' unconditional love.”

Photo via Time Out Tel Aviv YouTube