NEW YORK | As released by the Office of the Spokesman, U.S. Department of State (as delivered): SECRETARY OF STATE MADELINE K. ALBRIGHT: John, thank you very much, and thank you very much Nancy, Passant, Noa, Sa’ad, Kheerallah and Shouq. I have been honored to receive a number of awards in recent years, but I never have received one from Seeds. I will put it right in my office so that every time I look at it, I will be encouraged … FULL STORY

BY GEORGE SARRINIKOLAOU | NEW YORK Having taken on the task of “Preparing Tomorrow’s Leaders,” a private, not-for-profit organization in the United States is preparing to offer its services for the first time to 40 Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot teenagers later this summer. Founded in 1993, the organization, Seeds of Peace, brings together teenagers from conflict-ridden areas, such as the Middle East and the former Yugoslavia, at a summer camp in Otisfield, Maine. The camp, described in the organization’s … FULL STORY

BY JUDY SIEGEL | Seeds of Peace, a New York based organization that promotes coexistence programs for young people from regions of conflict, has announced plans to convene a Middle East Youth summit to be attended by Israeli, Palestinian, and Jordanian and Egyptian youths. The summit convening in Villars, Switzerland from May 1 through May 7 will feature speakers such as Jordan’s Queen Noor, former Prime Minister Shimon Peres, coalition whip MK Meir Sheetrit (Likud), Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian … FULL STORY

ELANA PREMACK | Discussing the effects of Arab-Israeli animosity on their lives as young people, four Middle Eastern students gathered in the Student Union Ballroom on Thursday evening to present, “Transforming Hatred: Sowing the Seeds of Peace in the Middle East,” a program sponsored by the University of Massachusetts Office of Jewish Affairs. Abdasalam al-Khayyat, from Nablus, West Bank, Shani Raz-Silbiger, from Jerusalem, and Shouq Tarawneh, from Amman, Jordan, lived together during the summer of 1997 at a peace encampment … FULL STORY

BY JULIE WIENER | As they mingled at Tribute Restaurant last Sunday, their plates laden with delicacies, it was hard to believe that thousands of miles away their people continue to be involved in one of the longest, bloodiest conflicts in the world. For one night, local Arab and Jewish leaders were friends. And organizers of Sunday’s event, a 100-person benefit for Seeds of Peace, hope it spawns a lasting relationship between the two communities. Founded in 1993 by journalist … FULL STORY

BY JULIE WIENER | Abdasalam Khayyat was skeptical at first. The 16-year-old from Nablus, along with other Arab teens from throughout the Middle East, was about to spend a month with Israelis. But he didn’t see how he’d be able to endure living with them. “I couldn’t imagine how I could eat with, talk with and sleep next to someone who’s my enemy,” he said. “I was afraid what my family and friends would think of me. Finally, I told … FULL STORY

Leading the Leaders BY MEREDITH KATZ | On September 29, 1996, fighting flared between Israeli and Palestinian soldiers in the wake of Israel’s opening of an exit to an archaeological tunnel near the El Aksa Mosque. But unknown to the youthful troops, another group of Arab and Israeli teenagers—in Jordan and Egypt as well as in Israel and the Palestinian territories—mobilized for battle. Using their computers, fax machines and telephones, these 16-to-18 year-olds sent e-mails and other messages across their … FULL STORY

BY CHRISTOPHER M. SINGER | DEARBORN Current affairs and history lessons about the Middle East became vividly personal Monday in John Forster’s sociology class at Dearborn Fordson High School. “I was throwing stones at Israeli soldiers during the intifida (uprising),” said a visiting speaker, Abdasalam Al-Khayyat, a 16-year-old Palestinian high schooler from the West Bank town of Nablus. He was accompanied by Shani Raz-Silbiger, a 14-year-old Israeli girl from Jerusalem. As participants in a 5-year-old program called Seeds of Peace … FULL STORY

BY TERRY AHWAL AND DAVID GAD-HARF | A few months ago, the two of us shared an incredible experience that has changed the dynamic of how we relate to each other. Along with five other Detroit-area leaders in the Palestinian and Jewish communities, we traveled to a small town in Maine for the dedication of a children’s camp called Seeds of Peace. For years we had crossed paths, giving Jewish-American and Palestinian-American viewpoints on issues in the news. Our debates … FULL STORY

AMY DOCKSER MARCUS | JERICHO It isn’t easy campaigning to succeed Yasser Arafat. Standing in the way is Mr. Arafat, who is the undisputed leader of the Palestinians and wants to stay that way. Then there are obstacles, such as the Palestinian’s powerful neighbors, the Israelis, who are always meddling in Palestinian politics. And there’s the trick of seeming tough enough to win backing from the populace without making the mighty Americans suspect you oppose the Mideast peace process. Saeb … FULL STORY