SEPTEMBER 22, 2025 – On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, ALLMEP and the Paris Peace Forum convened Israeli and Palestinian peacebuilders for a landmark roundtable with President Emmanuel Macron. Far more than a meeting, this gathering signaled a profound shift in how Israeli-Palestinian diplomacy can—and must—be conducted: not as a closed process among governments, but as an inclusive, multilateral framework in which civil society is fully integrated and Israelis and Palestinians themselves are placed at the heart of events.
This roundtable marked a milestone—cementing the principle that civil society is not an afterthought to diplomacy but a driving force within it. It was also the culmination of many months of work advancing that mission: from the G7 Leaders’ 2024 pledge to institutionalize civil society’s role, to Prime Minister Starmer’s International Fund commitment, to Macron’s “It’s Time” speech in Jerusalem in May 2025, to the Paris convening that June, and the New York Declaration this past July. In New York, that vision moved decisively from principle to practice.
As President Macron underscored in the meeting, “this was not an endpoint but a beginning.” The way forward must be broad, multilateral, and rooted in the voices of the people most affected. Participants reached consensus on urgent priorities: ending the war in Gaza, securing the release of hostages, and advancing mutual recognition of two sovereign states—each integrated into a wider regional architecture of peace, security, and equality.
ALLMEP’s Dr. Natali Levin-Schwartz and Wasim Almasri presented President Macron with new AI Pulse polling that revealed striking trends: majorities of Israelis, Palestinians, and Americans—including MAGA voters—support a two-state vision that is regionally grounded, civil-society–driven, and advanced through a multilateral process. Far from being politically impossible, the data shows that a just and shared future enjoys latent popular legitimacy across divides—if leaders are bold enough to seize it.
Civil society leaders gave that legitimacy vivid expression. May Pundak of A Land for All: Two States One Homeland delivered a Zazim petition with 10,000 Israeli signatures supporting recognition of a Palestinian state. Orna Shragai of Women Wage Peace shared the Mothers’ Call for Peace. Rawan Odeh of New Story Leadership for the Middle Eastpressed for youth leadership to be fully integrated into diplomacy. Yehuda Cohen, father of hostage Nimrod, issued a powerful call for urgent action to free hostages and end the war. And Dr. Nada Al-Hadithy shared searing testimony from Nasser Hospital, underscoring the scale of the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.
ALLMEP also presented the comprehensive proposals from June’s Paris Peace Summit—civil-society–authored recommendations for a more peaceful and just future. Barely an hour after the meeting concluded, echoes of these ideas could be heard in President Macron’s address to the UN General Assembly, illustrating how civil society’s voice can shape the highest levels of diplomacy when it is brought inside the process rather than left at its margins.
We are deeply grateful to President Macron, Minister Barrot, Ambassador Bonnafont, Conseillère Legendre, Justin Vaïsse, and—above all—the extraordinary Israeli and Palestinian civil society leaders who joined us at the table. Together, they are helping to rewire diplomacy: shifting it from elite negotiation behind closed doors to an inclusive, people-centered process capable of delivering a just and lasting peace.
