Women cycle for Middle East peace

Follow the Women charity founder, Detta Regan

A group of women are to embark on a gruelling bike ride across the Middle East to promote peace.

Detta Regan, from Berkshire, founder of Follow the Women charity, will join 17 others from the UK who will cycle through countries in the region.

More than 200 women from 23 countries will take part in the six-day event which begins in Beirut.

They hope to raise awareness about the suffering of women and children caught up in the conflict.

Peaceful protest

A keen cyclist, Mrs Regan, who established the organisation 18 months ago, has spent months travelling to and from the region organising the international event.

The women taking part in the peaceful protest come from a number of countries including Cyprus, Egypt, France, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Norway, the Palestinian territories, Spain, Syria and Sweden.

Some of them have witnessed the "devastating effect" the continuing conflict has had on people's lives at first hand.

Some of the women from the Palestinian group had to train on roads where they had to avoid tanks. Cyclist Philippa Ochonski

Mrs Regan's 31-year-old daughter Philippa Ochonski, who is flying out with the group from Heathrow Airport to Beirut on Friday, said: "It is like a dream come true for my mother.

"We are hoping we will have a major impact and raise support for a move towards peace.

"For example, some of the women from the Palestinian group had to train on roads where they had to avoid tanks."

Most of the British contingent is from Reading and Wokingham.

They are hoping to cycle an average of 35 miles a day.

From Beirut they will travel to Damascus in Syria and then onto Jordan for a two-day conference.

Money from the event will be used to furnish a counselling centre in Ramallah on the West Bank and establish education projects for girls. "We are not focusing on the politics of countries. This is about helping women and children in the region, " she added.