Striking photos show Israeli and Palestinian mothers walking barefoot through Rome to call for peace

Palestinian and Israeli mothers have walked barefoot through Rome, to demand an immediate and permanent end to violence.

They were joined by mothers and campaigners from around the world – including a peace activist from Northern Ireland – and are inviting more women to join the Mothers’ Call movement.

It is led by Reem Al-Hajajreh and Dr Yael Admi and their Nobel Peace Prize-nominated organisations, Women of the Sun (which is based in Palestine) and Women Wage Peace (which is based in Israel).

These striking photos, captured by Antonio Masiello on behalf of Mothers’ Call, show Al-Hajajreh and Admi leading the mothers on their peace march in Rome.

The Mothers’ Call wants to see an end to violence, and the full inclusion of women in negotiations aimed at reaching agreements to end the conflict.

Reem Al-Hajajreh, of Women of the Sun, said: “As a Palestinian mother, I have watched my people’s suffering be erased again and again – as the world shifted its attention. Today, we walk and we say – not this time. Our children deserve better choices than to kill or be killed. The cycle of war and violence continues to devastate lives every day, and it is women and mothers who often pay the ultimate price, while being systemically erased and excluded from the rooms where their futures are written.”

The march, which took place on Tuesday (March 24), is the start of a series of engagements to raise awareness of their mission. The Mothers’ Call movement then met with Pope Leo XIV the following day.

Dr. Yael Admi, of Women Wage Peace, said: “We are trapped in an endless cycle of violence – wars started by men, and paid for by our children. As women, and as mothers, our ambition is to build a movement – across the region and around the world – to secure safety, dignity, and a future for our children. No decision about our children’s future should be made without women at the table, which is why we’re asking the world to stand with us – as we strive for the opportunity of a generation – to set a different path.”

UN research shows that including women in peace negotiations means agreements are 35% more likely to last for at least 15 years.

However, women still represent just only 7% of negotiators and 14% of mediators in formal peace processes worldwide. In Israel-Palestine, that number is zero.

Joining the walk, Monica McWilliams, a Northern Ireland peace activist, said: “Three decades ago, women walked into a peace process that had tried to shut them out – and changed it forever. We refused to leave until the voices of communities, of mothers, of those who bear the cost of conflict, were part of the agreement. That peace has held. The brave women walking today have the same courage. The same persistence.

“The same understanding that without women at the table, you don’t get lasting peace – you get ongoing conflict. We proved what is possible. And yet, a generation later, women are still being excluded from these conversations. The world has not learned the lesson. It is time we stand shoulder to shoulder with these women and demand that it does.”

The Barefoot Walk is supported by Vital Voices, a non-profit dedicated to empowering women in peacebuilding, human rights and global security. 

Alyse Nelson, president and CEO of Vital Voices, said: “This is a movement that transcends borders and divides to unite in the face of conflict and violence; that courageously demands new ways to secure peace.”

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