Imane Khalifeh (1955–1995) was a Lebanese educator and peace activist.

Life

Imane Khalifeh was born in Beirut in 1955. She was educated there and lived through the breakout of the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...

in 1975. She was trained in child psychology and taught at the

Beirut University College The Lebanese American University (LAU) ( ar, الجامعة اللبنانية الأميركية) is a secular and private American university located in Lebanon. It is chartered by the board of regents of the University of the State of New Y ...

kindergarten. She became a member of the Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World. In April 1984, nine years into the war, Khalifeh developed the idea of a

peace march A peace walk or peace march, sometimes referred to as a peace pilgrimage, is a form of nonviolent action where a person or group marches a set distance to raise awareness for particular issues important to the walkers. 350 km Long Peace Walk New ...

in which the silent majority of the people of Lebanon would protest and express their opposition to the civil war. She wrote a poem suggesting the march that was published by the majority of Beirut dailies. She spoke out against the evils of war and coined the slogan "No to war. No to the tenth year of war! Yes to peace." Khalifeh joined a peace group that included

Nawaf Salam Nawaf Salam ( ar, نواف سلام; born 15 December 1953) is a Lebanese diplomat, jurist, and academic. He was elected on 9 November 2017 as judge on the International Court of Justice for the 2018–2027 term, having received a concurrent ma ...

, Maitre Laure Moghaizel and Hani Feghali. They circulated the anti-war petition "The Document of Civil Peace" throughout Beirut, gathering 70,000 signatures. On 6 May 1984, both Muslim and Christian parts of the city were to join for a march at the demarcation line known as "Museum alley" which separated the warring militias and armies. The march was stopped by blind shelling that resulted in many casualties. Khalifeh continued to work for peace in Lebanon until 1989 when she went into exile in Paris. She was awarded the

Right Livelihood Award The Right Livelihood Award is an international award to "honour and support those offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today." The prize was established in 1980 by German-Swedish philanthropist Jakob v ...

in 1984 "for inspiring and organising the Beirut peace movement." She died in 1995.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khalifeh, Imane 1955 births 1995 deaths Lebanese anti-war activists People from Beirut