Growing up in the Palestinian areas of Israel, Nisreen Abdallah said she saw Israelis kill and imprison many of her friends. She said Israeli soldiers would show up at her home any time of the day and search through her home.

‘All these experiences made me dehumanize Israelis,’ Abdallah, OneVoice Leadership’ Program Director in Palestine, said.

Abdallah said despite these tragic experiences, her attitude towards Israelis changed after she went to college in the United Kingdom.

‘Israelis and Palestinians don’t need to love each other, but they do need to learn to live peacefully,’ she said. ‘I have learned to respect the Israelis now, and I would like to see an end to this conflict.’

Abdallah’s story was one of several told Tuesday night in the Boston University’s College of Arts and Sciences. About 30 attendees listened to members of OneVoice, a nonprofit organization that advocates for peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, discuss a two state solution and the possibility of peace.

OneVoice Program Coordinator China Sajadian said OneVoice’s aim is ‘to amplify the voice of the overwhelming but silent majority of moderates who wish for peace and prosperity.’

OneVoice was founded in 2002 after political leaders and extremists continually failed to find a solution that identified with the 76 percent of Israelis and Palestinians who believe in a two-state solution, Sajadian said.

‘People need to take responsibility and think about what they are willing to do to end the conflict,’ he said.

Former Israeli soldier Roi Assaf said although he and Abdallah do not agree on everything, they both believe a two state solution is the best way to bring about peace.

‘As a student of Hebrew University [of Jerusalem], life was close to hell,’ Assaf, the OneVoice Director of Leadership Program in Israel, said. ‘The fear of being hurt, killed, was always present. When I saw my school cafeteria being blown up, I knew that I needed to do something to change the situation.’

Both Abdallah and Assaf said they receive positive feedback when they preach OneVoice’s message to Israeli and Palestinian citizens, even if they disagree.

‘They like the idea . . . that there is a partner on the other side willing to work with them to make it possible,’ Assaf said.

Assaf said students should take advantage of Obama’s administration, particularly Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and ask that they work to solve the conflict.

‘Students should pressure the new administration to take a moderate approach, listen to both sides of the argument and advocate for a peaceful two–state solution in the region,’ Assaf said.

CAS freshman Elisa Gill said it was interesting to hear a bipartisan view on such a polarizing issue.

‘I think the only way to solve the problem is trying to find common ground between the two sides,’ she said.

CAS senior Yael Shapira said as a fellow Israeli, parts of Abdallah’s story put him on the defensive.

‘I believe the best thing I can do is put my thoughts aside and try to comprehend her side of the story,’ he said.