Two States of Being (Interview in NYT of Amos Oz and Sari Nusseibeh)

[shira]

Reading the memoirs of Sari Nusseibeh (Once Upon a Country: A Palestinian Life) and Amos Oz (A Tale of Love and Darkness), it is sometimes hard to keep in mind that they are writing about the very same land, that they live less than 25 miles apart.

Sari Nusseibeh is a Palestinian politician and academic, and the life he describes is one of struggle for a land in which his illustrious family has played a central role since the 7th century. Amos Oz is an Israeli writer, and his story is set against the miraculous return of the Jews — including his East European Zionist parents — to their ancient homeland after centuries in Diaspora.

Their narratives seem at times to be mutually exclusive, built on aspirations and grievances that cannot be reconciled. Yet the two men have become good friends and have reached the same conclusion: that the only viable future for their land is as two neighboring states.

They met for this conversation in Berlin, where they had come to share an award. The conversation was moderated by Serge Schmemann, the editor of the IHT editorial pages.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/opinion/global/02iht-GA05nusseibeh.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss