Dear sponsors and supporters,

already at the end of February, German media reported on the events in Bosnia-Herzegovina which fuel fears of a new war among the population: Milorad Dodik, Serbian member of the Bosnia-Herzegovina State Presidency and President of the Republic of Srpska, called into question the state of Bosnia-Herzegovina; he did not accept a court decision that defines public land as property of the state as a whole (and not of the respective republic). This – among many other incidents – shows that nationalist slogans in the Former Yugoslavia today are still much more than rhetoric. Nationalist resentments flare up regularly, right now people have the feeling that the political situation can shift at any moment.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump recently announced his „Peace Plan“ for Israel and Palestine. The result were mass protests in the region.  Reactions among the international community were mixed, but often critical of Trump’s announcements. The Palestinian Authority then considered cancelling the security agreement with Israel, but this quickly turned out to be a threat rather than an actual decision.

Government formation in Israel remains very difficult even after the third consecutive parliamentary election. With a right-wing coalition likely to form a government, there is still no positive change in the political situation in sight.

Work on the ground is by no means getting easier for our partners in both project regions – but they are all the more determined to counter worrying political developments with their work.

As different as the contexts in the two project regions of Vacation From War may be, dialogue work stays incredibly important for giving young people the chance to develop perspectives for political change and peaceful coexistence together!

For this, they need your financial support.