An Israeli and a Palestinian female youth were awarded the King Hussein Prize for promoting peace, during a ceremony held in New York on Tuesday.
The prize, which is an annual event, was presented to Oriella Ben-Zvi and Nisreen Shaheen by Queen Nour, the Wife of late king Hussein of Jordan.
The youth are members of the “One Voice” peace organization.
Several figures attended the event, including the former U.S president Bill Clinton, defense minister under the Clinton administration William Cohen, and the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan in addition to actress Meg Ryan and pop singer Sting.
One Voice organization includes 120 members. The Israeli Ynetnews reported that it was founded by Daniel Lubetzky, an American-Jewish businessman to promote peace in the Middle East.
One Voice’s teaches young individuals to develop leadership skills and conducts efforts to push Israeli politicians adopt a peaceful policy towards the Palestinians in the occupied territories.
Nisreen Shaheen is the acting executive director of “One voice” on the Palestinian side; the Palestinian branch works in parallel with the Palestinian Authority to promote democracy.
The organization arranges meetings between Israeli and Palestinian youth interest in promoting peace in the region.
The King Hussein Prize which was founded in 2000 has been presented to groups, and individuals who show exceptional skill in promoting peace and tolerance between different cultures.
