About the Ceremony
The Joint Memorial Day Ceremony, organized by Combatants for Peace and The Parents Circle Families Forum, is one of the largest Israeli-Palestinian jointly organized peace events in history. The Joint Memorial Ceremony provides a unique opportunity for Israelis and Palestinians to grieve together and stand strong in demanding an end to the occupation and ongoing violence. The ceremony occurs yearly on the eve of Yom HaZikaron (Israeli Memorial Day). In Israeli mainstream culture, the ceremonies that are most often held to honor this day serve to reinforce cultural narratives of pain, victimhood, and hopelessness. The Joint Memorial transforms this narrative by bringing Palestinians to the Memorial alongside Israelis to mourn side by side and model another way forward.
History & Impact
By mourning together each year, we increasingly shift public opinion on a massive scale. Since the first Joint Memorial ceremony in 2006, which had less than 100 attendees, the number of people who have participated has grown tremendously. In 2023, over 15,000 Israelis and Palestinians attended the Joint Memorial Day Ceremony in person in Tel Aviv, while hundreds of thousands of people around the world joined online. In 2024, in the wake of the devastating events of October 7, 2023, and the immense suffering and bloodshed that followed, the ceremony continued in a private, undisclosed location with groups watching remotely throughout Israel, Palestine, and in over 200 venues abroad. The ceremony took on even greater significance as it brought together people from both societies and across the globe, united both in grief and in the commitment to a future of shared peace, justice, and safety for all. Throughout the years, participating guests have included leading intellectuals and artists such as Desmond Tutu, Tushar Gandhi, Mubarak Awad, Richard Gere, Achinoam Nini (Noa), Mira Awad, Eliezer Yaari, Dr. Amal Abu Said, David Grossman, and many others.
2025 Ceremony
On April 29, 2025, we will gather for the Israeli-Palestinian Joint Memorial Day Ceremony, in a powerful act of defiance against the forces that seek to divide us. Now in its 20th year, the Joint Memorial is a beacon of hope in the darkness. Through testimonies from bereaved Israeli and Palestinian families, musical performances, and messages of peace from human rights leaders, we will prove that even in the face of unimaginable loss, we can still choose humanity over hatred and hope over despair. The ceremony will take place at 8:30 pm Jerusalem time / 1:30 pm ET.
