‘We are family’: the Israelis sharing life and hope with Palestinians

Participants in a West Bank immersive language project tell of the strong bonds being forged that counter the rise in settler violence

In the plywood hut in which Palestinian Iman al-Hathalin and her family have lived since their home was bulldozed by the Israeli authorities in 2014, the warmth from a rickety samovar is welcome. Outside the only window, the winter sky is blinding white: it floods the room with an icy light and sends shadows dancing up the flimsy walls.

Everyone has been ill lately, it seems, including Hathalin's two-year-old daughter, who sleeps fitfully on her lap, and Maya Mark, her Arabic-speaking Israeli guest. It is not exaggerating to say Maya is like my sister," Hathalin said. I was so worried when she was sick. We are family."