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Peace in Middle East! Gerbils mysteriously disappear!
Actor Richard Gere hugged a Palestinian legislator and met with Israeli settlers Tuesday during a tour of Israel and the West Bank. Gereâs three-day visit was coordinated by Peacemakers Circle International, a network of organizations working for social justice. The group toured Jordan over the weekend. Encouraging good relations between Israelis and Palestinians and "spreading the culture of peace" are ways Hollywood stars can improve peoples lives, said Daoud Kuttab, a Palestinian adviser for the network. Gere, who made a similar trip in June, refused to speak to reporters. In Israel, the movie star met with settlers from the West Bank and walked on the walls around Jerusalemâs Old City. Later, he toured the West Bank town of Ramallah, where he embraced legislator Hanan Ashrawi, a well-known Palestinian spokeswoman and human rights activist. Gere was "very human, very intense, very caring, very kind," Ashrawi said. Outside an office where he was to meet with Palestinian community leaders, a group of his fans clapped and shouted when they saw him stepping out of his vehicle. Gere also visited Bethlehem in the West Bank and the Arab-Jewish Israeli city of Jaffa, south of Tel Aviv. His previous political activism has included the issue of human rights in Tibet.Posted by: Dar 2003-12-09 |
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