News Archive

Danish Banks To Divest From Israeli Companies

elaine — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 10:39:19 -0800

by Saed Bannoura
IMEMC News & Agencies
January 27, 2010

The Danske and Pensioner Bank (PKA) have decided to withdraw all investments from two Israeli companies, Elbit and Magal Security Systems, for their role in constructing the annexation wall in the occupied West Bank.

The decision came after human rights groups and boycott campaigns declared the wall to be in violation of an advisory ruling made by the Hague International Court.  

The two Danish banks also decided to divest from Africa-Israel Company, owned by Jewish billionaire Lev Leviev, for its role in financing the construction of settlements and the wall.  

Elbit Systems provide Israel with surveillance equipment installed atop the annexation wall while Africa-Israel invests in settlement construction within the occupied West Bank.  

The Pensioners Bank also decided to withdraw investments from American Detection Systems for their role in the wall's construction.  

These decisions were made as Israel declared it's intent to begin new construction of the wall on Palestinian lands west of Ramallah. This new section will annex more Palestinian land in order to expand the illegal settlement of Illit.

International Middle East Media Center

http://www.imemc.org/index.php?obj_id=53&story_id=57777

Mark Braverman discusses his book, Fatal Embrace

elaine — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 10:27:57 -0800

DOWNLOAD PDF PHOTO FLYER BELOW

News Release: For immediate release

BALTIMORE CATHEDRAL IS VENUE FOR JEWISH-AMERICAN AUTHOR'S INVITATION TO JEWISH AND CHRISTIAN COMMUNITIES TO TRANSFORM THEIR THINKING ABOUT THE SEARCH FOR MIDDLE EAST PEACE

Event date: February 10
Location: Cathedral of the Incarnation, Baltimore
Contact: Paul Verduin 301-495-7891 or PaulVerduin@starpower.net

Washington, DC Jewish-American author Mark Braverman will introduce and discuss his thought-provoking new book Fatal Embrace: Christians, Jews, and the Search for Peace in the Holy Land on Wednesday, February 10, 7-9 pm at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Baltimore, located at 4 East University Parkway (corner of N. Charles St.). Dr. Braverman's much-talked-about new title, just released by Synergy Books, features a foreword by acclaimed American biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann, who calls Braverman's groundbreaking work "an invitation that must be heeded." Harvard University author Sara Roy, a daughter of Holocaust survivors, calls Fatal Embrace "courageous, provocative, and greatly deserving of our attention." Princeton University professor emeritus Richard Falk, now the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, calls it "essential reading for all who genuinely care about the future of Israel and the suffering of the Palestinian people." Harvard international affairs professor Stephen Walt, co-author of The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, says "Braverman points the way to a future that respects past tragedies but is not imprisoned by them," adding that "both Jews and Christians have much to learn from this thoughtful, courageous, and deeply personal book." In the same vein, British clergyman-author Stephen Sizer calls Braverman's book "a wake-up call for Jews and Christians, especially, but for all who yearn for peace and reconciliation in the Middle East."

Fatal Embrace author Mark Braverman shows how the Jewish quest for safety and empowerment and the Christian endeavor to atone for centuries of anti-Semitism have united to suppress the conversations needed to bring about a just and lasting peace in the Holy Land. Fatal Embrace charts Braverman’s journey as an American Jew struggling with the difficult realities of modern Israel. Vividly describing the spiritual and psychological forces driving the discourse, Braverman turns to the prophets’ cry for justice and Jesus’ transformative ministry to show the way forward.

Mark Braverman is a Jewish American with deep family roots in the Holy Land. Trained as a clinical psychologist, Mark now devotes himself full-time to the cause for peace in historic Palestine. In his work he focuses on the role of religious beliefs and theology in the current discourse on Israel/Palestine and the future of interfaith relations. Mark is a co-founder of Friends of Tent of Nations North America. He serves on the advisory board of Friends of Sabeel--North America and the Board of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions-USA. He lives in Bethesda, MD, and maintains the website www.markbraverman.org.

Dr. Braverman's presentation, with a question-and-answer session following, will take place in the Cathedral sanctuary. The public event is sponsored by Baltimore Friends of Sabeel, an affiliate of the ecumenical Christian organization Friends of Sabeel--North America, which promotes a just peace in the Holy Land for all of its people through education, reconciliation and nonviolence.

For further information about this event, contact Paul Verduin at PaulVerduin@starpower.net or by phone at 301-495-7891. Mr. Verduin is Maryland area coordinator for Friends of Sabeel--North America, whose web address is www.FOSNA.org .

Catholic Bishops Criticize Israel

elaine — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 10:38:16 -0800

Catholic Bishops Criticize Israel On Palestinians

The Huffington Post
January 14, 2010
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/14/catholic-bishops-criticiz_n_423124.html

BEN HUBBARD | 01/14/10 09:42 AM | AP

JERUSALEM — A high-level delegation of Roman Catholic bishops criticized Israeli polices in Arab sectors of Jerusalem on Thursday and called for more contacts between ordinary Israelis and Palestinians.

The group of eight bishops from North America and Europe said violence, insecurity, the route of Israel's West Bank separation barrier, home demolitions and other policies threaten peace prospects and endanger the dwindling Christian presence in the Holy Land.

The issue of Jerusalem – home to holy sites for Jews, Christians and Muslims – remains the most flammable in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Palestinians claim the city's eastern sector as the capital of their future state. Israel, which captured east Jerusalem from Jordan in the 1967 Mideast war, insists the city will never be divided.

In a statement issued at the end of their annual visit, the bishops called for the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

"For us, this is not merely about politics; it is an issue of basic human rights," the statement said.

During their visit, the bishops visited Christian institutions in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, talked with Palestinians about their lives and listened to presentations from Israeli and Palestinian experts. It was unclear if they met with ordinary Jewish Israelis.

Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev disputed the group's criticisms of Israel's east Jerusalem policies.

"Only since reuniting Jerusalem in 1967 have the holy places of all faiths been protected under law and freedom of religion has prevailed," he said.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, the bishops spoke of watching Palestinian children cross Israeli checkpoints to return from school and the humiliation Palestinians say they feel at such places. Israel says the crossings are necessary to prevent attacks.

Bishop Gerald Kicanas, vice president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the human rights situation for Palestinians in the Holy Land has gotten worse during the 20 years that he has been visiting the region.

Kicanas, also the bishop of Tucson, Arizona, said Israeli and Palestinian youth lack opportunities to meet each other.

"Unless they find a way to engage one another, to meet one another as ordinary human beings, the situation will remain grave," he said.

Calling Bono--Palestinian Gandhis Exist..in Graves and Prisons

elaine — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:07:24 -0800

Your Palestinian Gandhis Exist ... in Graves and Prisons

Calling Bono

By ALISON WEIR

Dear Bono,

In your recent column in the New York Times, "Ten for the Next Ten," you wrote: "I’ll place my hopes on the possibility — however remote at the moment — that...people in places filled with rage and despair, places like the Palestinian territories, will in the days ahead find among them their Gandhi, their King, their Aung San Suu Kyi."

Your hope has already been fulfilled in the Palestinian territories.

Unfortunately, these Palestinian Gandhis and Kings are being killed and imprisoned.

On the day that your op-ed appeared hoping for such leaders, three were languishing in Israeli prisons. No one knows how long they will be held, nor under what conditions; torture is common in Israeli prisons.

At least 19 Palestinians have been killed in the last six years alone during nonviolent demonstrations against Israel’s apartheid wall that is confiscating Palestinian cropland and imprisoning Palestinian people. Many others have been killed in other parts of the Palestinian territories while taking part in nonviolent activities. Hundreds more have been detained and imprisoned.

Recently Israel has begun a campaign to incarcerate the leaders of this diverse movement of weekly marches and demonstrations taking place in small Palestinian villages far from media attention.

The first Palestinian Gandhi to be rounded up in this recent purge was young Mohammad Othman, taken on Sept. 22 when he was returning home from speaking in Norway about nonviolent strategies to oppose Israeli oppression and land confiscation. He has now been held for 107 days without charges, much of it in solitary confinement.

The second was Abdallah Abu Rahma, a schoolteacher and farmer taken from his home on Dec. 10, the only one to be charged with a crime. After holding him for several days, Israel finally came up with a charge: “illegal weapons possession” – referring to the peace sign he had fashioned out of the spent teargas cartridges and bullets that Israel had shot at nonviolent demonstrators. (One such cartridge pierced the skull of Tristan Anderson, an American who was photographing the aftermath of a nonviolent march, causing part of his right frontal lobe to be removed.)

The third was Jamal Jumah’, a veteran leader in the grassroots struggle, who was taken by Israeli occupation forces on Dec. 16th and is now being held in shackles and often blindfolded during Kafkaesque Israeli military proceedings.

Palestinians have been engaging in nonviolence for decades.

When I was last in Nablus I learned of a massive nonviolent demonstration that had occurred in 2001 – estimates range from 10,000 to 50,000 Palestinian men, women, and children taking part in a nonviolent march. All sectors of Nablus had joined together in organizing this – public officials, diverse parties, religious, secular, Muslim, Christian.

Modeling their action on images of Dr. Martin Luther King, they marched arm-in-arm, believing that Israel would not kill them and that the world would care. They were wrong on both counts. Israeli forces immediately shot six dead and injured many more. And no one even knows about it. At If Americans Knew we are currently working on a video to try to remedy the last part; there’s nothing we can do about the dead.

But there’s a great deal you can do, Bono. You can use your talent and celebrity to tell the world these facts. You can write a New York Times op-ed about the Palestinian Gandhis in Israeli prisons and call for their freedom. You can sing of these Palestinian Martin Luther Kings you wished for, and by singing save their lives.

For the reality is that nonviolence is only as powerful as its visibility to the world. When it is made invisible through its lack of coverage by the New York Times, the Associated Press, CNN, Fox News, et al, its practitioners are in deadly danger, and their efforts to use nonviolence against injustice are doomed.

In the New York Times you publicly proclaimed your belief in nonviolence. Now is your chance to demonstrate your commitment.

* * *

Killed by Israeli forces while demonstrating against the Israeli wall being built on Palestinian land [http://palsolidarity.org/2009/06/7647]

5 June 2009:
Yousef ‘Akil’ Tsadik Srour, 36
Shot in the chest with 0.22 calibre live ammunition during a demonstration against the Wall in Ni’lin.

April 17, 2009:
Basem Abu Rahme, age 29
Shot in the chest with a high-velocity tear gas projectile during a demonstration against the Wall in Bil’in.

December 28, 2008:
Mohammad Khawaja, age 20
Shot in the head with live ammunition during a demonstration in Ni’lin against Israel’s assault on Gaza. Mohammad died in the hospital on December 31, 2009.

December 28, 2008:
Arafat Khawaja, age 22
Shot in the back with live ammunition in Ni’lin during a demonstration against Israel’s assault on Gaza.

July 30, 2008:
Youssef Ahmed Younes Amirah, age 17
Shot in the head with rubber coated bullets during a demonstration against the Wall in Ni’lin. Youssef died of his wounds on August 4, 2008.

July 29, 2008:
Ahmed Husan Youssef Mousa, age 10
Shot dead while he and several friends tried to remove coils of razor wire from land belonging to the village in Ni’lin.

March 2, 2008:
Mahmoud Muhammad Ahmad Masalmeh, age 15
Shot dead when trying to cut the razor wire portion of the Wall in Beit Awwa.

March 28, 2007:
Muhammad Elias Mahmoud ‘Aweideh, age 15
Shot dead during a demonstration against the Wall in Um a-Sharayet – Samiramis.

February 2, 2007:
Taha Muhammad Subhi al-Quljawi, age 16
Shot dead when he and two friends tried to cut the razor wire portion of the Wall in the Qalandiya Refugee Camp. He was wounded in the thigh and died from blood loss after remaining in the field for a long time without treatment.

May 4, 2005:
Jamal Jaber Ibrahim ‘Asi, age 15
Shot dead during a demonstration against the Wall in Beit Liqya.

May 4, 2005:
U’dai Mufid Mahmoud ‘Asi, age 14
Shot dead during a demonstration against the Wall in Beit Liqya.

February 15, 2005:
‘Alaa’ Muhammad ‘Abd a-Rahman Khalil, age 14
Shot dead while throwing stones at an Israeli vehicle driven by private security guards near the Wall in Betunya.

April 18, 2004:
Islam Hashem Rizik Zhahran, age 14
Shot during a demonstration against the Wall in Deir Abu Mash’al. Islam died of his wounds April 28, 2004.

April 18, 2004:
Diaa’ A-Din ‘Abd al-Karim Ibrahim Abu ‘Eid, age 23
Shot dead during a demonstration against the Wall in Biddu.

April 16, 2004:
Hussein Mahmoud ‘Awad ‘Alian, age 17
Shot dead during a demonstration against the Wall in Betunya.

February 26, 2004:
Muhammad Da’ud Saleh Badwan, age 21
Shot during a demonstration against the Wall in Biddu. Muhammad died of his wounds on March 3, 2004.

February 26, 2004:
Abdal Rahman Abu ‘Eid, age 17
Died of a heart attack after teargas projectiles were shot into his home during a demonstration against the Wall in Biddu.

February 26, 2004:
Muhammad Fadel Hashem Rian, age 25
Shot dead during a demonstration against the Wall in Biddu.

- Hide quoted text -
February 26, 2004:
Zakaria Mahmoud ‘Eid Salem, age 28
Shot dead during a demonstration against the Wall in Biddu.

Notes and Sources:

(1) Israeli was first exposed in the West by the London Times in the late 1970s. Foreign Service Journal [http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/03/opinion/03bono.html] wrote about Israeli torture of Americans in June, 2002, and Addameer [http://addameer.info/?p=496] gives specifics today.

(2) Al Haq, the West Bank affiliate of the International Commission of Jurists – Geneva, writes: [http://freemohammadothman.wordpress.com/2010/01/] “…as part of their repression campaign, which coincided with the release of the Goldstone Report, the Israeli forces have re-launched daily dawn raids in villages affected by the Wall, arresting youths and children, for the purpose of extracting confessions about prominent community leaders advocating against the Wall, and continued to intimidate activists by destroying their private property and threatening them with detention. Finally, Israel has directly targeted the Grassroots “Stop the Wall” Campaign [http://stopthewall.org/index.shtml]by arresting and intimidating its leaders…His village, Jayyous, has been devastated by the Apartheid Wall

(3) Human Rights Watch [http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/12/04/israel-end-arbitrary-detention-rights-activist] found that “"The only reasonable conclusion is that Othman is being punished for his peaceful advocacy...”

(4) Abdallah Abu Rahma was taken [http://www.popularstruggle.org/freeabdallah]when “eleven military jeeps surrounded his house, and Israeli soldiers broke the door, extracted Abdallah from his bed, and, after briefly allowing him to say goodbye to his wife Majida and their three children — seven year-old Luma, five year-old Lian and eight month-old baby Laith, they blindfolded him and took him into custody.”

On Jan. 6th Abdallah wrote: [http://palsolidarity.org/2010/01/10429]:

“I mark the beginning of the new decade imprisoned in a military detention camp. Nevertheless, from within the occupation′s holding cell I meet the New Year with determination and hope…. Whether we are confined in the open-air prison that Gaza has been transformed into, in military prisons in the West Bank, or in our own villages surrounded by the Apartheid Wall, arrests and persecution do not weaken us. They only strengthen our commitment to turning 2010 into a year of liberation through unarmed grassroots resistance to the occupation.

“The price I and many others pay in freedom does not deter us. I wish that my two young daughters and baby son would not have to pay this price together with me. But for my son and daughters, for their future, we must continue our struggle for freedom…”

(5) Tristan Anderson was shot [http://palsolidarity.org/2009/03/5324] with a high-velocity canister after photographing a nonviolent protest in Ni’lin on March 13, 2009. His ambulance was held up for a period of time by Israeli forces before finally being allowed to take him to a hospital. Video of parents’ press conference [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcK_4ksR1fw]

(6) Israeli forces interrogated Jamal Juma’ and then “brought him back home, handcuffed, and searched his house while his wife and three children watched. Then they took him off to prison.” – CounterPunch [http://www.counterpunch.org/hijab12242009.html ] Despite being held for 20 days, [http://stopthewall.org/latestnews/2152.shtml] no charges have yet been brought against Jamal.

(7) The Nablus march mentioned above took place on March 30, 2001, on Jerusalem Street in the south of Nablus, leading to the Huwara checkpoint. This was on what Palestinians call the "Day of the Land" or "Land Day" (information on Land Day can be seen at http://electronicintifada.net/bytopic/255.shtml).

(8) In our study of the Associated Press, “Deadly Distortion,” [http://www.ifamericansknew.org/media/ap-report.html] we commented: “…our analysts looked at hundreds of articles that AP published on topics relating to the Israel/Palestine issue, and noted a number of additional patterns that merit further examination… Nonviolence movement. Palestinian resistance efforts have included numerous nonviolent marches and other activities, many joined by international participants, Israeli citizens, and faith-based groups. This nonviolence movement has been an important topic in the Palestinian territories, with growing numbers of people taking part – in 2004 the Palestinian News Network reported on 79 major demonstrations that were exclusively nonviolent. Yet, we did not find any reports in which AP had described a Palestinian demonstration or other activity as nonviolent or utilizing nonviolence.

Alison Weir is executive director of If Americans Knew, [http://www.ifamericansknew.org/] which provides information about Israel-Palestine. She can be reached at contact@ifamericansknew.org. She phoned and faxed Bono’s management company Principle Management [http://www.fanmail.biz/25157.html] at both their New York and Dublin locations in an effort to contact him but has not yet received a reply. She suggests that others may wish to do this as well: 212.765.2330 / fax: 212.765.2372.

Source: http://counterpunch.org/weir01082010.html

Join our 2009 Christmas Appeal

Lea — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:52:02 -0700

Dear Friends of Sabeel,

May the blessings of this Advent Season fill you with Hope and encourage you in your work for Peace. The enclosed card and matching envelope is our gift to you this Christmas. Please send it to someone special, who will be inspired by the amazing story I will share with you about how these cards came to be created.

The story begins with two members of Friends of Sabeel from The Netherlands who participated in a Sabeel witness trip. Marijke and Clemens Egelie were inspired by their experience and envisioned a Peace & Remembrance Tapestry for Sabeel’s 7th International Conference held last year to commemorate the Nakba of 1948. Almost 2,000 tapestries were created by men, women and children from all around the world with images sharing the universal message of peace. Each piece measures almost one-foot square. One piece was made of the stitches of 78 different individuals. The pieces were put together in banners of 12 squares sewn by refugee women from the Jalazoun Refugee Camp near Ramallah in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Each banner additionally holds the names of four villages destroyed or depopulated in 1948 as part of the Nakba, etched along the bottom in embroidery. These banners honor the memory and demonstrate the commitment to peace. The entire collection filled the assembly hall at the Sabeel 7th International Conference, radiating a message of peace. The tapestries have been used in processions and worship services and put on display in various locations.

The entire collection may be viewed here.

The story of the Peace & Remembrance Tapestry is like a parable about our international movement for justice and peace in the Holy Land, a human tapestry made up of individuals working tirelessly through faith for the lives of others. Friends of Sabeel in the U.S., the Netherlands, Scandinavia, Canada, the U.K, Ireland, France, Germany and in Oceania, are weaving a tapestry of peace and justice for the Holy Land and around the world. It is a big undertaking requiring much time and patience, a vision of beauty, and a faith in the God of Peace who is carrying us toward some surprise fulfillment. This work includes our program of regional conferences, such as the events in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and here in Washington DC held in October. These events are organized by dedicated and gifted volunteers and are so important because they widen and deepen the grassroots movement, moving us closer to our goal.

The tapestry weavings are now pictured on these beautiful greeting cards. We have just enough left over from the Nakba conference to send one to each of you in this Christmas Appeal. Please use it to send to a friend or relative for Christmas with a message about your support for Sabeel, and please make a generous tax-deductible donation to Friends of Sabeel to help carry our important work into the New Year. A donation form and return envelope are enclosed. Thank you, and Merry Christmas.

In Gratitude and in Hope,

Grace Saïd
Member, FOSNA Steering Committee

Sabeel Christmas Message 2009

elaine — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 09:23:48 -0800

SABEEL CHRISTMAS MESSAGE 2009

The Message of the Manger

This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom God favors!’ Luke 2:12-14

In the Christmas story, the sign for finding the Christ-child was this: He would be wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. There are three important messages that emanate from the manger:

1. God in Christ has become accessible. Jesus Christ was born in a manger making God approachable, reachable, and available to all people. This is the great sign of God’s love.
2. The manger stands for a different kind of a Messiah. The seemingly contradictory sign that the Christ is lying in a manger does not bode well for the birth of a great leader who was supposed to come from the line and lineage of his great ancestor David. The manger is the way of meekness and humility, the way of sacrificial love, the way of nonviolence.
3. The Christ of the manger brings peace through justice and not through violence. Luke takes the titles that people attributed to Caesar – liberator, savior, lord, and god - and gives them to Jesus Christ. The contrast between the two figures, in the eyes of the world, was huge. For the early Christian community, and for us, Jesus Christ is the authentic Savior and Lord. Caesar brought peace through military means that were tremendously costly in terms of human life and property, and such peace is always shaky. Christ can bring peace through justice and love that, when applied and practiced, is more stable and permanent. This is what Christ teaches and that is why, from Christ to this day, we dare to defy the Caesars.

Reading the Christmas story through Palestinian eyes, and in light of our daily experience, is revealing. We live in the shadow of empire, of which the modern state of Israel is part. It is easy for Palestinians to contrast their oppressive situation under the Israeli occupation with people of Jesus’ day who lived under the brutal occupation of the Romans with its daily oppression and humiliation.

Empire always talks about peace but its peace is false and temporary. Its peace is imposed and, therefore, an extension of its oppressive military power. It can never last because it is built on injustice. Israel’s peace rhetoric is a mirage that quickly disappears and people are hit with the glaring reality of injustice, violence, and humiliation. Such peace cannot be trusted.

Christ’s peace is built on justice and is acquired through nonviolence and love. It can be trusted. Therefore, the unjust and illegal Israeli occupation must come to an end. Doing justice to the Palestinians ensures the achievement of peace through justice. At this Christmas season we need to re-commit ourselves to the liberation that Christ brings; and to continue to walk the way of peace through justice and nonviolence.

Sabeel wishes all its friends a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May the message of the manger inspire our activities throughout the coming year!

The Plight and Flight of Palestinian Christians

elaine — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 14:23:14 -0800

The Plight and Flight of Palestinian Christians

Source: Middle East Monitor

December 12, 2009

by Dr. Hanan Chehata

The “Palestinian problem” is usually perceived to be a “Muslim” problem; a conflict between the Jews and the Muslims and, for the most part, it is. However, it is easy to forget that amidst all of the politics and international wrangling there is another small but extremely important group who also have a deep rooted and valid claim to what is undoubtedly the most disputed “Holy Land” in the world. It may only constitute an extremely small minority of the entire population (estimates range from anywhere between 2.3%-1.5%)1 but the Palestinian Arab Christians living in Palestine/Israel also have a legitimate historical and spiritual claim to the land. After all, Palestine was the birthplace of Jesus Christ, the land in which he spent his short 33 year life and even shorter term of ministry and, according to Christianity, the place of his crucifixion and resurrection as well. Ever since the time of Jesus there has been a permanent presence of Christianity in the Holy Land. Not only is it a spiritual hub to which Christians from all over the world flock for pilgrimage and prayer, particularly during Christmas and Easter, but it has also been a home to countless Christians of numerous denominations for almost two thousand years.

Download the full article in PDF attachment below.
Or, click here to go to the Middle East Monitor web page.

Kairos Palestine Document, a prayerful call of Palestinian Christians to End the Occupation

elaine — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:09:07 -0800

Kairos Palestine Document

A PALESTINIAN CHRISTIAN CALL TO END THE OCCUPATION

Media contact (Jerusalem) Ranjan Solomon
+972-54-733-7857

A group of Palestinian Christians representing a variety of churches and church-related organizations have issued an animated and prayerful call for an end to occupation of Palestine by Israel.

The call, issued at a 11 December meeting in Bethlehem, comes at a time when many Palestinians believe they have reached a dead end. It raises questions to the international community, political leaders in the region, and the churches worldwide about their contribution to the Palestinian people's pursuit of freedom. Even in the midst of "our catastrophe" the call is described as a word of faith, hope and love.

Referred to as "The Kairos Palestine Document" the call echoes a similar summons issued by South African churches in the mid-1980s at the height of repression under the apartheid regime. That call served to galvanize churches and the wider public in a concerted effort that eventually brought the end of apartheid.

The authors of the Kairos Palestine Document, among them Patriarch Emeritus Michel Sabbah from the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Lutheran Bishop of Jerusalem Munib Younan, and Archbishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna of Sebastia from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, have raised the challenge of the urgency for peace with justice to religious and political leaders in Palestinian and the Israeli society, international community, and to "our Christian brothers and sisters in the churches" around the world. They believe that current efforts in the Middle East are confined to managing the crisis rather than finding pertinent and long term solutions to the crisis.

Decrying empty promises

Expressing their pain, the signatories of the call decry the emptiness of the promises and pronouncements about peace in the region. They remind the world about the separation wall erected on Palestinian territory, the blockade of Gaza, how Israeli settlements ravage their land, the humiliation at military checkpoints, the restrictions of religious liberty and controlled access to holy places, the plight of refugees awaiting their right of return, prisoners languishing in Israeli prisons and Israel's blatant disregard of international law, as well as the paralysis of the international community in the face of this tragedy.

Rejecting Israeli justifications for their actions as being in self-defence, they unambiguously state that if there were no occupation, "there would be no resistance, no fear and no insecurity."

They argue: "God created us not to engage in strife and conflict but together build up the land in love and mutual respect. Our land has a universal mission, and the promise of the land has never been a political programme, but rather the prelude to complete universal salvation. Our connectedness to this land is a natural right. It is not an ideological or a theological question only." They reject any use of the Bible to legitimize or support political options and positions that are based upon injustice.

Declaring the occupation of Palestinian land as a sin against God and humanity, they steadfastly adhere to the signs of hope such as "local centres of theology" and "numerous meetings for inter-religious dialogue", recognizing that these signs provide hope to the resistance of the occupation. Through the logic of peaceful resistance, resistance is as much a right as it is a duty as it has the potential to hasten the time of reconciliation.

Asserting that this is a moment demanding repentance for past actions, either for using hatred as an instrument of resistance or the willingness to be indifferent and absorbed by faulty theological positions, the group calls on the international community and Palestinians for steadfastness in this time of trial. "Come and see [so we can make known to you] the truth of our reality", they appeal.

Poignantly, they conclude, "in the absence of all hope, we cry out our cry of hope. We believe in God, good and just. We believe that God's goodness will finally triumph over the evil of hate and of death that still persist in our land. We will see here 'a new land' and 'a new human being', capable of rising up in the spirit to love each one of his or her brothers and sisters."

The authors are:

● Patriarch Michel Sabbah
● Bishop Dr Munib Younan
● Archbishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna
● Rev. Dr Jamal Khader
● Rev. Dr Rafiq Khoury
● Rev. Dr Mitri Raheb
● Rev. Dr Naim Ateek
● Rev. Dr Yohana Katanacho
● Rev. Fr Fadi Diab
● Dr Jiries Khoury
● Ms Sider Daibes
● Ms Nora Kort
● Ms Lucy Thaljieh
● Mr Nidal Abu Zulof
● Mr Yusef Daher
● Mr Rifat Kassis - coordinator of the initiative

A list of signatories of the document can be found at:
http://kairospalestine.ps/?q=node/2

Media contact in Jerusalem: Ranjan Solomon +972-54-733-7857

Full text of the Kairos Palestine Document:

In English http://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/other-ecumenical-bodies/kairos-palestine-document.html

In Arabic
http://www.oikoumene.org/fileadmin/files/wcc-main/2009pdfs/Kairos%20Palestine_Ar.pdf
Palestine_Ar.pdf

Auf Deutsch
http://www.oikoumene.org/fileadmin/files/wcc-main/2009pdfs/Kairos
Palestine_Ger.pdf

En français
http://www.oikoumene.org/fileadmin/files/wcc-main/2009pdfs/Kairos
Palestine_Fr.pdf

Churches in the Middle East: solidarity and witness for peace:
http://www.oikoumene.org/?id=3113

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 349 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 560 million Christians in over 110 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, from the Methodist Church in Kenya. Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.

World Council of Churches - News Release
Contact: +41 22 791 6153 +41 79 507 6363 media@wcc-coe.org For immediate release - 11/12/2009

World Council of Churches Statement on Gilo Settlement Expansion

elaine — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:43:43 -0800

Public statement by the WCC general secretary on Israel's approval of 900 more housing units in Gilo settlement

It is with great disappointment that the World Council of Churches (WCC) heard the news that the government of Israel has approved construction of 900 more housing units in the settlement of Gilo near East Jerusalem. The WCC strongly condemns the decision of the government of Israel to expand the illegal Gilo settlement as we believe that this decision will hinder attempts now in process to restart the peace negotiation.

The decision by the Israel government has shocked and dismayed many in the international community. This is evident in reactions from around the world deploring the decision to expand settlements on Palestinian territories. In fact, this decision to expand settlements is a violation of international law like the many before it. Gilo is built on Palestinian territory occupied by Israel in the 1967 war. Any expansion of settlements perpetuates illegality. At a time when Palestinians—many of them impoverished—are routinely denied legitimate applications to build homes on their own land, the decision to approve construction of 900 new four- and five-bedroom housing units that will bring relatively affluent Israelis to occupied land is deplorable.

The WCC Central Committee recently stated that “the continuous settlement of lands beyond Israel’s internationally recognized borders (the 1949 Green Line borders) is almost universally rejected and met with widespread incredulity because it is illegal, unjust, and incompatible with peace and antithetical to the legitimate interests of the state of Israel.” The central committee meeting in September 2009 further noted that “if settlements continue to expand and proliferate, they will further complicate negotiations and may destroy any chance for peace”.

The WCC restates our long-held view that, in addition to their illegality, settlements defy the whole concept of a viable and contiguous Palestinian state. Our considered opinion is that the Israeli government can choose to act in a manner consistent with international law or continue to violate the rights of its Palestinian neighbours, demolish their homes, disregard international public opinion and suffer the consequences in its relationships. People of conscience and good faith around the world are looking to the government of Israel now to move toward the resolution of an interminable conflict rather than continue with decades-old policies that have driven it toward the point of no return.

The WCC asks its member churches, ecumenical partners, specialized ministries and agencies to act with resolve, and in concert, to mobilize their members and the public to reverse this decision of the Israeli government and the settlement programme it represents.

Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia
General secretary
World Council of Churches

Source: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/general-secretary/statements/gilo-settlement-expansion.html

Reflection on the Sabeel Witness Trip, by Rev. Richard Toll

elaine — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:37:01 -0800

Reflection on the Sabeel Witness Trip, October 29 through November 6, 2009

By The Rev. Richard K. Toll, D.Min., D.D.
Chairman, FOSNA

Since 1983 I’ve been traveling to the occupied territories, taking groups from my parishes to stay at St. George’s in East Jerusalem. I have participated in many Sabeel events, and have experience the first and second intifadas at close quarters. Throughout this time I have assumed and hoped that for the sake of Israel and the Palestinians that a final peace solution would come into being. I fought for support of a two-state solution at the national convention of the Episcopal Church USA in 1991 and helped win the resolution even though there was intense opposition by visitors from the Jewish Federation who informed us “You cannot tell Israel what to do”. That statement was as true then as it is now.

After all these years it is obvious that Israel has no desire for a two-state solution as outlined by the terms of international law and based on 1967 borders and the sharing of Jerusalem.

The Sabeel witness visit this past month showed us new major expansion of settlements on the West Bank, more than I ever imagined since my most previous visit there in November 2008. Confiscations of land, destruction of villages, more by-pass roads and construction of the wall has shaken off the entire population of Palestinians. And the wall also separates Palestinians in one neighborhood from Palestinians nearby. The wall is so very ugly in the Bethlehem area especially and is used to choke off any hope for the thousands of Palestinians who live there.

We observed families being evicted from their homes in the Sheik Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, and the machinery of ethnic cleansing continues. Our trip was aptly entitled “The Ongoing Nakba”. Evictions and land confiscation are visible everywhere and moving at a fast pace.

I used to hope Israel would come to its senses because it is insane to think what they’re doing will solve the problem in a peaceful way. It’s obvious they do not want a peaceful solution and have a military solution for everything. It is also insane that the U.S. government continues to support Israel in view of a continuing arrogance and contempt for international law and human rights. Most recently, our government’s refusal to uphold the UN’s Goldstone Report on Israel’s devastating war on Gaza is a sign Washington’s policy with regard to Israel’s occupation is not changing, as we had hoped it would.

I was very saddened by what we witnessed on our trip, by the extremes of the Israeli right and the unconditional support of the American government. Our U.S. policy allows Israel’s aggression to continue, making us as much at fault as Israel, since we have enabled that nation its belligerence without consequences.

For the sake of Israel, Palestine, the U.S. and the entire world, I hope very soon all parties will come to their senses.

As for Sabeel, we will continue our work in Hope for Justice and Peace in God’s world.

Goldstone and Gaza, by Jimmy Carter

elaine — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:25:39 -0800

NEW YORK TIMES

November 6, 2009
Op-Ed Contributor

Goldstone and Gaza

By JIMMY CARTER

Judge Richard Goldstone and the United Nations fact-finding mission on the Gaza conflict have issued a report about Gaza that is strongly critical of both Israel and Hamas for their violations of human rights. On Wednesday, a special meeting of the U.N. General Assembly began a debate on whether to refer the report to the Security Council.

In January 2009 rudimentary rockets had been launched from Gaza toward nearby Jewish communities, and Israel had wreaked havoc with bombs, missiles, and ground invading forces. Judge Goldstone’s claim is that they are both guilty of “crimes against humanity.” Predictably, both the accused parties have denounced the report as biased and inaccurate.

It is good to remember that Judge Goldstone, from South Africa, is one of the world’s most widely respected jurists, with an impeccable record of wisdom, honesty and integrity. He is a devout Jew and has long been known as a fervent defender of Israel’s right to peace and security.

In April 2008 I personally visited Sderot and Ashkelon, Israeli communities near enough to have been hit by rockets fired from within Gaza. While there, I condemned these indiscriminate attacks on civilians as acts of terrorism, and I consider their condemnation by Judge Goldstone to be justified.

A year later, after the Israeli attack on Gaza, I was able to examine the damage done to the small and heavily populated area, surrounded by an impenetrable wall, with its gates tightly controlled. Knowing of the ability of Israeli forces, often using U.S. weapons, to strike targets with pinpoint accuracy, it was difficult to understand or explain the destruction of hospitals, schools, prisons, United Nations facilities, small factories and repair shops, agricultural processing plants and almost 40,000 homes.

The Goldstone committee examined closely the cause of deaths of the 1,387 Palestinians who perished, and the degree of damage to the various areas. The conclusion was that the civilian areas were targeted and the devastation was deliberate. Again, the criticism of Israel in the Goldstone report is justified.

He has called on the United States, Israel and others who dispute the accuracy of the report to conduct an independent investigation of their own. Hamas leaders have announced that their investigation is under way, but Israel has rejected Judge Goldstone’s request.

Putting this dispute aside, it is important to examine present circumstances and the need to prevent further suffering. The rocket fire from Gaza is now being severely restrained, perhaps because of the certainty of Israeli retaliation, but the punishment of the 1.5 million Palestinian inhabitants of Gaza continues. Now and for the past 10 months, Israel has not permitted cement, lumber, panes of glass, or other building materials to pass their entry points into Gaza. Several hundred thousand homeless people suffered through last winter in a few tents, under plastic sheets, or huddled in caves dug into the debris of their former homes. The weather was warmer when I was there several months later, but the description of suffering through the winter cold was heartbreaking.

Another winter is now approaching, and neither the Israelis nor the international community has taken steps to alleviate the Gazans’ plight. United Nations agencies and leaders in the European community have offered to provide an avenue of channeling funds and building materials directly to the people in need, completely bypassing the Hamas political leaders. These officials, both in Gaza and in Damascus, have assured me that they would accept this arrangement.

There would be no chance for the misuse of such assistance for weapons, military fortifications, or other non-humanitarian purposes.

I was informed recently by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia that he has pledged $1 billion, and other Arab leaders have added an additional $300 million for this purpose. There is little doubt that other nations would also be generous.

Without ascribing blame to either of the disputing parties, it is imperative that the United States and the international community take steps to assure that the rebuilding of Gaza be commenced, and without delay. The cries of homeless and freezing people demand relief.

Jimmy Carter was president of the United States from 1977 to 1981 and is a member of the Elders.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/06/opinion/06iht-edcarter.html?_r=4&ref=global

UN Backs Gaza War Crimes Report

Lea — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:51:15 -0800

UN backs Gaza war crimes report

The UN General Assembly has voted in favour of a resolution calling for independent inquiries by Israel and the Palestinians into war crime claims.

After a two-day debate on a report by former war crimes prosecutor Richard Goldstone, there were 114 votes in favour, 18 opposed and 44 abstentions.

The report condemns the conduct of both sides last December and January, after Israel launched an offensive in Gaza.

The Palestinians backed the report but Israel said it did not promote peace.

Mr Goldstone's report concluded that Israel had "committed actions amounting to war crimes, possibly crimes against humanity" by using disproportionate force, deliberately targeting civilians, using Palestinians as human shields and destroying civilian infrastructure during its Gaza offensive.

It also found there was evidence that Palestinian militant groups including Hamas, which controls Gaza, had committed war crimes, and possibly crimes against humanity, in their repeated rocket and mortars attacks on southern Israel.

The report demanded that unless the parties to the Gaza war investigated the allegations of war crimes within six months, the cases should be referred to the International Criminal Court.

Palestinians and rights groups say more than 1,400 Gazans died in the 22-day conflict, but Israel puts the figure at 1,166. Thirteen Israelis, including three civilians, were killed.

"Realisation of justice"

The General Assembly draft resolution was introduced by Arab states and the Non-Aligned Movement, which represents 118 nations.

It called for independent investigations of alleged war crimes to be set up by both the Palestinian Authority and Israel within three months.

The resolution also asks Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to report to the General Assembly within three months on implementation "with a view to considering further action, if necessary, by the relevant United Nations organs and bodies", and to send the report to the Security Council.

General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding - unlike Security Council resolutions. However, correspondents say the Security Council is unlikely to take any action if the case is ever referred to it.

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian UN observer, backed the resolution but also insisted that Israel's "aggressions and crimes" could not be equated "with actions committed in response by the Palestinian side".

"We are determined to follow up this report and its recommendations in all relevant international forums, including the Security Council and the International Criminal Court, until the realisation of justice," he said.

Israel's permanent representative, Gabriela Shalev, warned that the report and the debate did "not promote peace - they damage any effort to revitalise negotiations in our region".

"Time and again, the report inverts Israel's unprecedented extensive efforts to save civilian lives as proof that any civilian casualties were therefore deliberate," she told the Assembly.

The US, as a key ally of Israel, was one of a small number of countries expected to vote against the resolution.

For the EU, Sweden's UN envoy Anders Liden urged Israel and the Palestinians to "launch appropriate, credible and independent investigations into possible violations".

He described the report as "serious" and said the EU was "committed to assessing it seriously".

Inquiries criticised

The UN debate also comes as an Israeli human rights organisation criticised investigations being carried out by the Israeli military.

B'tselem said 13 of 23 military police investigations under way were based on information it and two other rights organisations had gathered.

Three of the cases concerned civilians allegedly killed while holding white flags, and four were cases where Gazans were said to have been used as human shields.

B'tselem said the investigations were not sufficient because they "only relate to isolated incidents in which a suspicion exists that soldiers breached military orders".

"To date, not one investigation has been opened regarding Israel's policy during the operation, on matters such as the selection of targets, the open-fire orders given to soldiers, the legality of the weapons used, the balance between injury to civilians and military advantage, and so forth," it said.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/8342915.stm

UN: Jerusalem Must Be Capital of Israel and Palestine

elaine — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:38:30 -0700

Jerusalem must be capital of both Israel and Palestine, Ban says

28 October 2009 – Jerusalem must be the capital of two States – Israel and Palestine – living side-by-side in peace and security, with arrangements for the holy sites acceptable to all, if peace in the Middle East is to be achieved, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned today.

“This is the road to the fulfilment of both the vision of [United Nations] Security Council resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative, and the yearning for peace of people from all over the world,” he said in a message to the Jerusalem International Forum in Rabat, Morocco, in which he stressed that the international community does not recognize Israel's annexation of East Jerusalem.

He cited as obstacles to peace continued Israeli evictions and house demolitions in East Jerusalem, the latest occurring yesterday, closure of Palestinian institutions there, and the expansion of settlements contrary to international law and the Roadmap peace plan espoused by the Quartet – UN, the European Union, Russia and the United States – that seeks a two-State solution to the conflict.

“These actions exacerbate tensions, prejudge final status issues, and often have tragic human consequences,” he added in the message, delivered by Robert H. Serry, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Mr. Ban’s Personal Representative to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority.

“I reiterate the repeated calls of the Quartet and the wider international community for Israel to freeze settlement activity, cease provocative and unilateral actions, and reopen Palestinian institutions in Jerusalem.”

Mr. Ban voiced concern at recent episodes of tension at the Haram Ash-Sharif/Temple Mount compound in East Jerusalem, sacred to both Muslims and Jews, and the potential for further clashes, also citing the “sensitive excavations” by Israel in reconstructing a ramp to the site.

“We all share a responsibility to promote calm,” he declared. “Today, access into East Jerusalem remains severely restricted by checkpoints, permits and the [Israeli] barrier, whose route is contrary to the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice.

“These measures separate families, limit Palestinian economic development and make it difficult for residents of the West Bank to access specialized medical facilities,” he added, urging Israel to respect the “organic relationship” between East Jerusalem and the remainder of the West Bank.

“Only with the achievement of a two-State solution, and a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace, will Jerusalem be fully restored to its rightful place as a symbol of sanctity, brotherhood and peace for the entire world,” he concluded.

At a news conference in New York, Mr. Ban reiterated his warning that disturbances at the Haram Al-Sharif/Temple Mount compound and other events in Jerusalem can undermine trust throughout the region. “I call upon all to avoid provocative acts,” he said.

He also called on Israel to re-open its borders with Gaza to allow in reconstruction material 10 months after the end of its three-week assault on Hamas there, noting that a donors’ conference in Egypt raised $4.5 billion in financial aid for the purpose.

“Little if any of that money has been delivered,” he said. “Families have not been able to rebuild their homes. Clinics and schools are still in ruins. I urge Israel to accept the UN reconstruction proposals as set forth, recognizing that the only true guarantee of peace is people’s well-being and security.”

He called on both Israel and the Palestinians to carry out “full, independent and credible investigations” in accordance with the recommendations of a UN commission led by Justice Richard Goldstone, a former prosecutor at the UN war crimes tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, which found evidence that both sides committed serious war crimes in the Gaza war.

He said he was aware both were now going to have their own investigations. “I have not received any further details, but that is positive, I would say,” he added. “I have been repeatedly urging the Israeli Government to institute a credible domestic investigation process.”

For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news

Lutheran Bishops Write to Obama, "Remain firm"

elaine — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:41:53 -0700

ELCA NEWS SERVICE
October 14, 2009

Lutheran Bishops Urge for Continued Commitment to Middle East Peace

The Rev. Bruce H. Burnside, bishop, ELCA South-Central Synod of Wisconsin, Madison, met with Erin Gulick, Foreign Affairs and Defense Legislative Aid for U.S. House Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wis.

WASHINGTON (ELCA) -- Lutherans are asking the Obama Administration to "remain firm" in addressing the Israeli-Palestinian impasse. In an Oct. 13 letter, 58 of 65 synod bishops and the presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) expressed concern over the stalemate and the "fading hopes" for a two-state solution.

"We urge the U.S. to insist upon an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land as well as an end to Palestinian violence against Israelis," the letter said. The bishops stated their appreciation for the past leadership of the administration and asked the president to "remain firm in your commitment to achieving a just peace between Israelis and Palestinians."

The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, said, "The call of ELCA bishops for an even stronger leadership role by President Obama recognizes both a high regard for his commitment and the recognition of U.S. responsibility to press for a negotiated solution."
The letter also addressed the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. "The deteriorating conditions in Gaza make a resumption of violence more likely; however, opening the borders in a carefully monitored way that respects Israel's security needs will contribute to the well being of Palestinians in Gaza and the safety of Israelis in Sderot," the letter said.

According to the Rev. Bruce H. Burnside, bishop, ELCA South-Central Synod of Wisconsin, Madison, the letter was sent to demonstrate to the administration and to the church as a whole that "this church stands behind just peacemaking."

"We hope that the outcome is to encourage these extraordinary moves and to encourage support throughout the ELCA," said Burnside. "We see this as an opportunity to speak in both directions, from the church and to the church."

Burnside chairs the ELCA Conference of Bishops' Middle East concerns committee and was among four bishops on the committee who visited members of Congress here Sept. 24-25.

The bishops asked the members of Congress "to be supportive of all the efforts to resolve the conflict in the region," said the Rev. Floyd M. Schoenhals, bishop, ELCA Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod, Tulsa, Okla. "This is an opportune time," he said.

The letter outlined the ELCA's affiliation with the Lutheran World Federation as well as with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL).

Hanson met recently with the Rev. Munib A. Younan, ELCJHL bishop. "I heard firsthand of the deteriorating situation in Jerusalem and the diminishing hope for a lasting settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," said Hanson.

The letter expressed the bishops' "conviction that now is the time for bold U.S. leadership." A copy of the letter was delivered to members of Congress.

The letter is at:
http://www.ELCA.org/Our-Faith-In-Action/Justice/Advocacy/Issues/Israel-Palestine.aspx on the ELCA Web site.

Audio of comments by Bishop Burnside is at http://media.ELCA.org/audionews/091014Burnside.mp3 on the ELCA Web site

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog

Choose Life-Message from Sabeel

elaine — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 09:41:17 -0700

A Message from Sabeel

Choose Life

The situation in the Occupied Territories, including the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, is dire and desperate. Israel continues to jeopardize any opportunity for a peaceful negotiated settlement by creating facts on the ground in defiance of the international community.

It is becoming increasingly clear that Israel has already finalized its intended objectives in the Occupied Territories and has a blueprint for a final resolution of the conflict, which it aims to achieve unilaterally. This means that the unilateral withdrawal on Israel's part from the Gaza strip was not a haphazard move, but part of a comprehensive plan to avoid the establishment of a viable, contiguous and independent Palestinian state. Actually, had Israel been interested in a negotiated peace settlement, it would have accepted the comprehensive Arab Peace Initiative that has been on the table since 2002. It is important to point out that an Israeli unilateral withdrawal from the remnants of a fragmented West Bank, together with its full control of all borders and border crossings, will only be a repetition of the Gaza situation and all the brutality inherent in such an occupation, as highlighted in the recent Goldstone report.

The Israeli leadership is being disingenuous with the Palestinian and International representatives. It has been implementing its final plans, especially recently in the hasty scramble to tighten its hold on East Jerusalem, and to finalize its blueprint for the end of the conflict along the following lines:

1. Jerusalem: Israel has already decided the outcome of Jerusalem regardless of what the Palestinians, the Arabs or even the rest of the international community think. Jerusalem is already Judaized and it is cut off from the rest of the occupied territories through the Hafrada (separation/apartheid) Wall and the checkpoints.

2. Refugees: Israel has decided the fate of the Palestinian refugees. For Israel, there is no RIGHT of Return. Israel has already indicated that any solution of the refugee problem will have to take place outside the state of Israel. Its demand of the recognition of Israel as a “Jewish State” is part of this plan.

3. Borders: Israel has decided the lines of the final borders through the building of the separation Wall. It is note-worthy to indicate that Israel controls the coming in and going out of every Palestinian.

4. Settlements: Israel is racing against time to finalize its settlement plan in a way that will grab as much Palestinian land as possible and prevent the establishment of a contiguous Palestinian State.

From Israel's right-wing religious perspective, Israel does not answer to international law or to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; it only answers to the demands of "Divine Rights" which for them mean that the whole land belongs to Israel exclusively with no room for the Palestinians.

What Israel is doing is a recipe for unrest, instability and violence. A people’s movement is already gaining momentum on the West Bank. Moreover the Boycott Divestment Sanctions (BDS) campaign is also gaining ground around the world. A negotiated settlement based on international legitimacy is in the interest of all parties concerned and it can still be achieved.

The international community, including the United States and Europe, need to empower the UN and give it back the responsibility of resolving the conflict on the basis of international law. The UN has the mechanism to do so, but it needs to be empowered first.

Finally, it is worthwhile for the Israeli leaders to ponder the words of their own Bible. Before his death, Moses summoned the children of Israel and reiterated to them the words of the commandments and covenant: “I have set before you today life and prosperity…life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live…” (Deuteronomy 30: 15 & 19).

Is the state of Israel, through its present leadership choosing adversity and death? On the surface, its choice, might seem to many Israelis to be life and prosperity but given the regional context, Israel has no future in the Middle East region if it does not justly resolve the Palestinian conflict. With injustice lies adversity and death while peace, prosperity, and life lie in doing justice.

Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Centre – Jerusalem
September 30, 2009

P.S. Sabeel strongly denounces the postponement of the discussion of the Goldstone Report on Israel’s war on Gaza, at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The report must be followed up, Justice must take its course and the guilty must not get away with impunity.

Britain’s Unions Commit to Mass Boycott

elaine — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:11:32 -0700

Britain’s unions commit to a mass boycott movement of Israeli goods
Posted by RORCoalition on Thu, 09/17/2009 - 13:40

17 September 2009 [Palestine Solidarity Campaign] In a landmark decision, Britain’s trade unions have voted overwhelmingly to commit to build a mass boycott movement, disinvestment and sanctions on Israel for a negotiated settlement based on justice for Palestinians.

The motion was passed at the 2009 TUC Annual Congress in Liverpool today (17 September), by unions representing 6.5 million workers across the UK.

Hugh Lanning, chair of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said: ‘This motion is the culmination of a wave of motions passed at union conferences this year, following outrage at Israel’s brutal war on Gaza, and reflects the massive growth in support for Palestinian rights. We will be working with the TUC to develop a mass campaign to boycott Israeli goods, especially agricultural products that have been produced in illegal Israeli settlements in the Palestinian West Bank.’

The motion additionally called for the TUC General Council to put pressure on the British government to end all arms trading with Israel and support moves to suspend the EU-Israel trade agreement. Unions are also encouraged to disinvest from companies which profit from Israel’s illegal 42-year occupation of Gaza and the West Bank.

The motion was tabled by the Fire Brigades Union. The biggest unions in the UK, including Unite, the public sector union, and UNISON, which represents health service workers, voted in favour of the motion.

The motion also condemned the Israeli trade union Histadrut’s statement supporting Israel’s war on Gaza, which killed 1,450 Palestinians in three weeks, and called for a review of the TUC’s relationship with Histadrut.

Britain’s trade unions join those of South Africa and Ireland in voting to use a mass boycott campaign as a tool to bring Israel into line with international law, and pressure it to comply with UN resolutions that encourage justice and equality for the Palestinian people.

Source: http://bdsmovement.net/?q=node/555

Report of UN Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict

elaine — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 16:08:39 -0700

Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict

(Advance Edited Version)

15 September 2009
HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

This is a 575-page PDF file.

AMEU: "Boycott, Divestment-Ending Israel's Occupation"

administrator — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 22:10:19 -0700

Boycott, Divestment: Ending Israel's Occupation
from The Link, a publication of Americans for Middle East Understanding AMEU.org

Excerpt: Drive along Indian School Road, between University Boulevard and US-25, in downtown Albuquerque, on April 8, 2009, and you'd be hard-pressed not to catch sight of a particular billboard displaying a young Palestinian girl on one side and an Israeli tank on the other.

Turn left onto University Boulevard, then left again onto Candalaria Road, then right onto 2nd Street, and you'd come across a similar billboard, and you might read the message between the images: "Tell Congress: Stop Killing Children. No More Military Aid to Israel." And were you to continue north on 2nd Street and turn right onto Montano Road, then merge onto I-25S, then onto I-40W until you came to Coors Boulevard NW, you would come upon yet another billboard with the same message, and you might have noticed that it was sponsored by Stop$30Billion.com.

The signs-10 of them in all-definitely caught commuters' attention. Lamar Outdoor Advertising, which owns the billboards, and whose graphics department helped design the ads, reported hundreds of responses, although it never gave a breakdown of those for and
those against. (Click here to continue reading. This is a pdf file, 16 pages).

Global Actions to End Israel's Occupation

elaine — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:06:43 -0700

Global Actions to End Israel's Occupation of Palestinian Land is an exciting new report of bold initiatives around the world to end the Israeli occupation. It contains hundreds of actions taken by governments, businesses, labor unions, NGO's, academic and religious organizations, and other groups. The report has just been published and will be an important tool for your local work for justice and peace.

As Israel defies the will of the international community to halt its settlement expansion, the momentum for divestment, boycotts and sanctions, and other principled actions is growing.

This is a project of the Interfaith Peace Initiative: http://www.interfaithpeaceinitiative.com/

Two ways to view the report:

1) Download pdf file attached below;
2) Go to Interfaith Peace Initiative web page: www.interfaithpeaceinitiative.com/globalactions.pdf

WWC Calls Israel To Freeze and Dismantle Settlements

elaine — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 11:27:04 -0700

WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES (WCC) CALLS ISRAEL TO FREEZE AND DISMANTLE SETTLEMENTS

September 3, 2009 World Council of Churches - News Release
Contact: +41 22 791 6153 +41 79 507 6363 media@wcc-coe.org
For immediate release - 02/09/2009 13:37:31

The World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee called on the Israeli government to freeze and begin to dismantle settlements in occupied Palestinian territories. It also encouraged a commitment to non-violence and peace negotiations, and reiterated the need for an international boycott of products and services from settlements.

In a public "Statement on Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory" passed today in Geneva, Switzerland, at the end of its 26 August - 2 September meeting, the WCC central committee called "upon the government of Israel to urgently implement an open-ended freeze in good-faith on all settlement construction and expansion as a first step towards the dismantlement of all settlements".

The committee considered some 200 settlements with more than 450,000 settlers in the occupied Palestinian territories to be "illegal, unjust, incompatible with peace and antithetical to the legitimate interests of the state of Israel".

Even as "Israel's own right to exist in security evokes sympathy and solidarity around the world", the committee states, "its policies of expansion and annexation generate dismay or hostility". For the committee there is a clear distinction to be made "between the legitimate interests of the state of Israel and its illegal settlements".

The central committee reiterated its call to WCC member churches "to accompany and encourage the commitment to non-violence and active engagement in peace negotiations". It also invited "member churches and faithful to give moral and practical support to non-violent acts of resistance to the confiscation of land, the destruction of Palestinian properties and the eviction of people from their homes and lands".

The statement "reiterates the need for an international boycott of settlement products and services". WCC member churches "must not be complicit in illegal activities on occupied territory" and therefore should "practice morally responsible investment in order to influence businesses linked to the Israeli occupation and its illegal settlements", the statement says.

The illegal settlements "and their corresponding infrastructure including the separation wall" have dire consequences on the life and dignity of Palestinian people, the WCC statement says.

Settlements deny Palestinians access to "land and water resources", "restrict their freedom of movement, diminish their basic human dignity and, in many cases, their right to life", impede their "right to education and access to health care", and "destroy the Palestinian economy". In these ways they increase "the sense of dispossession and despair".

In addition to that, "illegal settlements in and around Jerusalem endanger the future of the holy city", which "should be open to all and shared by the two peoples and the three religions".

The WCC central committee calls on member churches to "pray for and assist people who are suffering" as a result of settlement activity and "hear the call of the churches of Jerusalem for concrete actions by the international ecumenical community toward a just peace for both Palestinians and Israelis".

Full text of the "Statement on Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory":
http://www.oikoumene.org/?id=7156

WCC member churches in Israel/Palestine:
http://www.oikoumene.org/en/member-churches/regions/middle-east/israel.h...

Sixty Years of WCC Policy on Palestine/Israel, 1948-2009 (in brief)
http://www.oikoumene.org/?id=3628

More information on the 26 August - 2 September 2009 Central Committee meeting:
http://www.oikoumene.org/cc2009

Free high resolution photos are available:
http://www.oikoumene.org/en/events-sections/cc2009/photo-galleries.html

Other public statements and minutes approved by the WCC central committee:
Seeking a nuclear weapon-free world
WCC upholds right to refuse military service
WCC calls for solidarity amid anti-Christian violence

Additional information:
Juan Michel,+41 22 791 6153 +41 79 507 6363 media@wcc-coe.org

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 349 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 560 million Christians in over 110 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, from the Methodist Church in Kenya. Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.

Yusef Daher
Executive Secretary
Jerusalem Inter-Church Centre - JIC
P.O.Box 741, Jerusalem 91000
Tel :+972 (0)2 627 4534, 628 9858 ( Ext. 105)
Fax:+972(0)2 627 4499
Mobile 050 5545 179