and the damage from the conflict# will be felt for years to come.
Hamas' attack on October 7 and Israel's# counteroffensive since have left thousands## dead and caused immense physical# destruction.
It's also left an## indelible mark on the collective psychology of# an entire region, and especially its c William Brangham has the story of a# program trying to address that problem.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The Binational# School of Psychotherapy launched## about seven years ago trains postgraduate# students to care f this in an area with seemingly endless conflict.
The trainees are a mix of Jewish Israelis,# Arab Israelis and Palestinians all together.
I recently spoke to the program's# two directors, Esti Galili-Weisstub,## who is a Jewish Israeli, and Shafiq# Masalha, a Palestinian Arab Israeli.
Thank you both so much for joining us today.
Obviously, it's impossible to encapsulate# everything that young people and seeing and experiencing in the midst# of this war.
But I wonder if you could## just talk a little bit about the kinds of# challenges that these professionals will## have to deal with trying to help children# who are living through this experience.
DR. ESTI GALILI-WEISSTUB, Co-Director, Binational# School of Psychotherapy: When children suffer## from extreme trauma, as they are, Their concentration is damaged,# so their intellectual abilities## are damaged.
Their ability to# create, their ability to imagine,## they are all damaged.
The anxiety# shows up as behavioral problems,## as problems with connecting with the others,# or with feeling safe, being able to enjoy play.
It's like basically having something of an iron## cast kind of stifling all your# mental and cognitive functions.
DR. SHAFIQ MASALHA, Co-Director, Binational# School of Psychotherapy: At this time in the war,## we are counting the number of people who are# dead or injured, but we do not idea now about the psychological harm that's# going on and that will show itself very soon.
I'm very afraid that the next generation of the## Palestinian people in Gaza will be# really suffering from this trauma.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: As the war grinds# on, Masalha and Galili-Weisstub have## continued the program remotely.
Both# Israeli and Palestinian students have## also kept working in their communities, even# though some have lost loved ones themselves.
There are two trainees living in Gaza,## and the directors have had only# sporad DR. SHAFIQ MASALHA: In the beginning,## at least in DR. ESTI GALILI-WEISSTUB: Physical# needs, physical immediate needs.
DR. SHAFIQ MASALHA: Yes.
have a different language even when they talk# to people around, to children around.
I mean,## it's a different attitude.
So even# if they don't do pure clinical work## during times of war, their language# is different and there's influence.
DR. ESTI GALILI-WEISSTUB: Because the number of# people that are exposed to trauma or experiencing## immediate threats is so large, we don't have the# ability for meaningful one-on-one ongoing therapy.
So, mostly it's group intervention,# parent guidance, some one-on-one crisis## intervention.
It's not actual therapy.
But# even those small interactions are meaningful,## because they are aimed to strengthen the# child or the adolescent, support his family## and to give them a little bit of hope and# understanding that it is a process.
And,## hopefully, they will come out of the# other side, just saying you're not alone,## we're trying to listen to you,# we're trying to do the best we can.
The situation, as Shafiq said in# Gaza, is in a different scale,## so there is no ability but to deal, and I don't# know exactly how they do it, with communities.## But we really hope that better days will come# and we will be able to offer therapy again.
DR. SHAFIQ MASALHA: Most people interviewed# talking about this war and the Palestinian-Israeli## conflict, they talk in historical or political# terms.
And very few talk in psychological terms.
Like, there are two people who are traumatized,# who are acting from the place of trauma,## feeling under threat all the time, feeling anxious# all the time, feeling that their existence is in## danger.
So this is exactly what happens to# the individual who is suffering from trauma.
We believe, if there were two# individuals, we would be able## much more to help them.
But because it's# a mass psychology, it's more difficul WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The directors also believe# that, by bringing Israeli and Palestinian## practitioners together, they can help two# traumatized communities start to heal.
DR. ESTI GALILI-WEISSTUB: We really believe# that by strengthening the empathic ability## to the other is our only hope to ever# bridge and build something together.
If you look into in-depth psychology, the# importance of being empathic to parts that## are difficult are the most important part# of the therapeutic process.
But, here,## I must say that it is almost physically painful to# sit and to realize how hard it is for the other,## and at the same time being scared and being# worried and being ashamed and being angry and## being, I think, all the myriad of feelings that we# have to deal with as students and as supervisors.
Right now, the emphasis is on relating to the# others, even in times of war, realizing that we## are going to share the same piece of land, so# relating to the other is actually our future.
DR. SHAFIQ MASALHA: Our students have# -- especially the Palestinian students,## have to cope with a lot of resistance in## their communities joining a joint# group of Israelis and Palestinians.
They live in a very small piece of land,# but they live with a lot of boundaries,## physical boundaries of meeting each# other and psychological boundaries.## So they really don't know each other# as human beings.
There's a lot of## dehumanization.
The other is an enemy.
You# know, I can't talk to the other person.
So this is the feeling of the vast# majority of both sides.
So, in this case,## we created an island, I think, that, within the# last 20 years, I believe that there's not such## a place where Palestinians and Israelis equally# go through the same program and meet each other.
And they have a group process that helps# them to process their own relationships.## It's not only learning material, but we# need to create more events like this.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: All right, Dr. Shafiq# Masalha and Dr. Esti Galili-Weisstub,## thank you both so much for talking with us.
DR. SHAFIQ MASALHA: Thank you.
DR. ES
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