The whole idea is for them to get to know each other, to break down stereotypes, and to informally get to know that the other side are not demons as it sometimes seems in the news, Peleg said.

Through the Know Your Neighbor project, the children work in pairs with different communities and meet altogether at the end of the year for the tournament. There are pairings of Israelis and Palestinians from east and west Jerusalem, Israelis and Jordanians, and Arab and Jewish Israelis.

These pairs meet four or five times throughout the year and go on outings together to the beach, theater, and water park among other activities. “They are no different from us,” said Ofir, an Israeli youth who played in the soccer game last week. “I am glad we got to meet like this.