A group of Israeli and Palestinian girls who play together on one of the Middle East’s only integrated basketball teams have travelled to Belfast to take part in a cross-community sports tournament.
The seven girls, most from East and West Jerusalem, joined young people from across Northern Ireland at the annual Interface Games, hosted by the PeacePlayers at Stranmillis College this week.
The charity, founded by two American brothers, uses sport to build relationships between children from divided communities.
It began working in Northern Ireland in 2002, in the aftermath of the Holy Cross dispute in north Belfast, and now operates sister programmes in the Middle East, South Africa and the United States.
Gareth Harper, managing director of PeacePlayers Northern Ireland, said the visit carried particular weight given the situation the girls have left behind.
“We have a mixed group of Palestinian and Israeli girls who play in an integrated team in the Middle East,” he said.
“In the Middle East, basketball is massive. So the significance of these girls playing together in an integrated team there, and having their parents support them is massive. They’re a real symbol of positivity and of what’s possible.”
While basketball is the charity’s usual sport, this week’s tournament also saw the young people try Gaelic games, rugby and soccer.
Dr Bella Kovner, managing director of PeacePlayers Middle East, said the programme’s participants often grow up minutes apart without ever meeting.
“They can live a minute away from each other and never speak,” she said.
“Often they only meet later on and these can be very negative encounters. When they grow up together, when they develop their friendships as a united team, they gain friendship for life, they gain the skills, they gain the confidence — and it changes their whole being.”
The trip was the first visit to Northern Ireland for the entire group.
“It’s been a wonderful journey and they learn so much every day. We’re so loved here, we’re so welcomed here, and we find there are so many similarities,” Dr Kovner said.
Among the local participants was Natasha Flanagan, who joined PeacePlayers at primary school nine years ago.
“I think that’s something unique,” she said.
“Obviously the scale of what’s going on there is worse than what we’ve seen, but you can definitely draw similarities.”
One of the visiting players said the programme had given her friendships that would otherwise have been impossible.
“You can meet friends that, without PeacePlayers, you would never meet,” she said. “It’s like family.”
Another said she hoped one day to return as a coach.
Another said the trip had let the two groups learn from each other. “There are a lot of similarities, and it’s so good that we get to know about their conflict and they get to know about ours,” she said.”
Mr Harper said the visitors’ interest in Northern Ireland’s peace process came with a lesson attached.
“We’re now 28 years on from the Good Friday Agreement and we have peace,” he said. “But that job of work isn’t over. The business of reconciliation is something we need to work at every day — and sport is a fantastic tool for that.”
