Toward an understanding of and response to tobacco use among high-risk Israeli and Palestinian youth

Little has been done to bring Israeli and Palestinian people together to address common health problems. Because Jewish and Arab people have been in a declared and/or de facto state of war since the establishment of Israel as a nation in 1948, the possibility of Israelis and Palestinians working together to deal with a mutual problem has been bleak. This article describes efforts to link people together to address tobacco use cessation among Israeli and Palestinian high-risk youth and provides an overview of a current initiative to demonstrate a smoking cessation model, Project EX, which may contribute to the health of those involved and to societal change in the region.