Israel was struck by disaster last week: A forest fire blazed out of control outside of Haifa. More than 40 were killed. Israel's firefighters didn't have the manpower or the equipment to put out the blaze.
Today the fire is under control thanks to assistance Israel received from the United States, European countries, Turkey, and its Arab neighbors.
That's right: Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, and even the Palestinian Authority sent men and equipment to help Israel put out the flames (outside planes and Palestinian fire truck and firefighters pictured above).
Skeptics believe that the Israelis and Palestinians harbor so much hate and pain that peace is impossible. The events of the past week show that they are wrong.
The image of Palestinian firefighters standing shoulder-to-shoulder with their Israeli counterparts shows us that both peoples understand that they have a common humanity and a shared future.
This week, in the midst of tragedy, we saw a glimpse of the future.
Source: peacenow.org
Dec. 8, 2010