News & Events


Canadian Friends of Sabeel: James Graff Memorial Lectures 2023: Peace is Possible
Nov
15

Canadian Friends of Sabeel: James Graff Memorial Lectures 2023: Peace is Possible

This year’s JGML features Jonathan Kuttab, internationally renowned human-rights lawyer and author. See the poster below. Distribute it widely. Attend with all your friends and colleagues on November 15th at 7 PM Eastern in the Victoria College Chapel (room 213), 91 Charles Street West, Toronto M5S 2C7.

Jonathan Kuttab’s theme will be "Peace is Possible". Exactly the message of hope we need in these darkest of times. 

This in-person lecture will also be held online for those outside the Toronto area with purchase of a ticket for more information contact us: info@friendsofsabeel.ca

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Sabeel-Kairos UK: Hope for Palestine - Autumn Online Series
Oct
1

Sabeel-Kairos UK: Hope for Palestine - Autumn Online Series

Sabeel-Kairos UK is Taking Action for Palestine this Autumn with their 4-week Hope for Palestine series. Week 2, "Hope for what?" explores solutions with FOSNA Executive Director Jonathan Kuttab.

Oct 1, 7pm GMT+1, 2pm EDT

This series is FREE to all Sabeel-Kairos paying members. Non-members will need to make a donation of £10 for the series.

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Nonviolence International Presents: Jonathan Kuttab's Book Launch, "The Truth Shall Set You Free"
Sep
28

Nonviolence International Presents: Jonathan Kuttab's Book Launch, "The Truth Shall Set You Free"

We Are All Part of One Another - Webinar Series

Jonathan Kuttab's Book Launch - The Truth Shall Set You Free

Thursday September 28, 2023, Noon-1:30pm ET

Hosted by Maia Carter Hallward, with Special Guest Mubarak Awad, NVI Founder. 

RSVP Here! 

Join us as we welcome Jonathan Kuttab to speak about his memoir along with special guest Mubarak Awad. Jonathan Kuttab is a co-founder of Nonviolence International, a Palestinian Human Rights lawyer-and Christian pacifist. In this marvelous memoir, he takes us on a personal journey from anger and thoughts of violence to his deep commitment to unrelenting peaceful activism. Be forewarned: This is not the journey of a starry-eyed idealist. It’s a true life story of a man who has witnessed violence, terrible injustice, suffering and heart-wrenching losses. 3 of the chapters are devoted to nonviolence and the work of his cousin Mubarak Awad who will also be joining the book launch. After discussion of his book we will transition into talking about nonviolence and the future of Palestinians and Israelis today.

Jonathan will be joined by NVI founder, Mubarak Awad. Mr. Awad is an adjunct professor at the American University in Washington, DC at the School of International Studies. He focuses on promoting peace dialogue and transforming post-conflict societies, as well as teaching graduate courses on the methods and theory of nonviolence. Recently, we celebrate the first ever Mubarak Awad Day. Check out this page for inspirational comments from people who have been influenced by his work. https://www.nonviolenceinternational.net/mubarak_awad_day

Hosted by: Dr. Maia Carter Hallward is a full professor at Kennesaw State University, Georgia, USA, in the School of Conflict Management, Peacebuilding, and Development and Executive Editor of the Journal of Peacebuilding and Development. Maia has published widely in the fields of international relations, civil resistance, and international conflict management, including textbooks on International Conflict Management (2019, Routledge) and Nonviolence (2015, Polity). A former intern at Nonviolence International, she became a vegetarian for environmental reasons at 13.

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PARCEO and Haymarket present: Challenging Antisemitism from a Framework of Collective Liberation
Sep
27

PARCEO and Haymarket present: Challenging Antisemitism from a Framework of Collective Liberation

Join PARCEO and Haymarket for a discussion on challenging antisemitism together with all forms of injustice.

Wednesday, September 27 · 7 - 8:30pm EDT

Eventbrite's fee is nonrefundable.

About this event

  • 1 hour 30 minutes

  • Mobile eTicket

Please join PARCEO and Haymarket Books on Wednesday, September 27th at 7 PM for the launch of our “Curriculum on Antisemitism from a Framework of Collective Liberation” grounded in a deep commitment to challenging antisemitism and all forms of injustice.

This new curriculum was created by PARCEO, together with educators, scholars, and activists. The need for educational resources on antisemitism within a pedagogic framework of collective liberation is particularly important for this moment–as rising white nationalist violence targets many of our communities, including Jews, Muslims, Black people, immigrant communities, trans and queer people, among others, and as false charges of antisemitism are directed at seekers of Palestinian justice.

Join PARCEO and Haymarket Books for a discussion on a new curriculum on the importance of combatting antisemitism as part of our broader struggles for justice.

Welcome by Nina Mehta

Opening/Moderated by Robin DG Kelley

Remarks from Jamil Dakwar, Nyle Fort, Abby Saul, Lesley Williams

Closing by Mark Tseng-Putterman

***Register through Eventbrite to receive a link to the video conference on the day of the event. This event will also be recorded and live captioning will be provided.***

Speakers:

  • Robin DG Kelley, activist, scholar, writer; Distinguished Professor and Gary B. Nash Endowed Chair in U.S. History at UCLA

  • Lesley Williams, activist and educator against racism, Islamophobia, and anti-Palestinianism.

  • Jamil Dakwar, human rights lawyer and chair of Adalah Justice Project’s advisory board

  • Abby Saul, early childhood educator and social media specialist

  • Nyle Fort, minister, social justice organizer, scholar; Assistant Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies, Columbia University

  • Nina Mehta, community educator and co-director, PARCEO, an education, resource, and research center

  • Mark Tseng-Putterman, a historian of Asian American community politics, Cold War imperialism, and social movements.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

This event is co-sponsored by Haymarket Books and PARCEO. While all of our events are freely available, we ask that those who are able make a solidarity donation in support of our important publishing and programming work.

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Palestine Writes
Sep
22
to Sep 24

Palestine Writes

Palestine Writes

FOSNA is a proud sponsor of this year's Palestine Writes literature festival!

Palestine Writes is the only North American literature festival dedicated to celebrating and promoting cultural productions of Palestinian writers and artists. Born from the pervasive exclusion from or tokenization of Palestinian voices in mainstream literary institutions, Palestine Writes brings Palestinian cultural workers from all parts of Historic Palestine and our exiled Diaspora together with peers from other marginalized groups in the United States.

Join us at the University of Pennsylvania the weekend of September 22nd for this exciting and important festival.

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NorCal Sabeel Presents: Dr. Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian
Sep
15

NorCal Sabeel Presents: Dr. Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian

NorCal Friends of Sabeel Presents: Dr. Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkain

"The Developers" and the Land/Life-Grabbers in Palestine: Between Silwan and the Armenian Quarter

September 15th @ 3pm; University of California, Berkeley (412 Eshelman Hall)

As an in-demand speaker, Prof. Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian is the Lawrence D. Biele Chair in Law at the Faculty of Law-Institute of Criminology and the School of Social Work and Public Welfare at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Global Chair in Law- Queen Mary University of London. Her research focuses on trauma, state crimes and criminology, surveillance, gender violence, law and society. She studies the crime of femicide and other forms of gendered based violence, violence against children in conflict ridden areas, crimes of abuse of power in settler colonial contexts, surveillance, securitization and social control.

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2023 Bring the Peace Award
Aug
21
to Aug 31

2023 Bring the Peace Award

We're so excited to share that our Executive Director Jonathan Kuttab was named the 2023 Legacy Peacemaker by Mennonite Church USA!

A Legacy Peacemaker is someone who has devoted their life to peace and justice work. Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz, MC USA’s denominational minister for peace and justice, said, “The Bring The Peace award is a tangible way to support the church’s peace mission and recognize the work of denominational peacemakers who are actively engaged in promoting peace in their congregations and communities.”

Read more here!

#mennonitechurch #mennonite #palestine #mennonitechurchusa #peacemaker #bringthepeace

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Black August x Freedom Church of the Poor: Honoring the Patron Saints and Martyrs of the Liberation Struggle
Aug
20

Black August x Freedom Church of the Poor: Honoring the Patron Saints and Martyrs of the Liberation Struggle

Black August x Freedom Church of the Poor: Honoring the Patron Saints and Martyrs of the Liberation Struggle

On Sunday, August 20 from 6pm to 7pm ET, our board member Nyle Fort and our National Organizer Chad Collins will be joining the Black August x Freedom Church of the Poor series for “Honoring the Patron Saints and Martyrs of the Liberation Struggle”.

Organizations speaking: Black Veterans Caucus (Common Defense), Donkeysaddle Projects,  Courtland Cox (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the SNCC Legacy Project),  Friends of Sabeel North America

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2023 Parliament of World Religions: An Interfaith Discussion on Human Rights and the Crime of Apartheid in Israel/Palestine
Aug
16

2023 Parliament of World Religions: An Interfaith Discussion on Human Rights and the Crime of Apartheid in Israel/Palestine

Please note the time has changed to 3:00-4:30 PM

FOSNA Executive Director Jonathan Kuttab will be a panelist at the 2023 Parliament of World Religions in Chicago! Attend this interfaith discussion on Human Rights and the Crime of Apartheid in Israel/Palestine August 16th ath 3:00pm.

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Visit Palestine - Witness Injustice: Connecting Struggles
Jul
8
to Jul 17

Visit Palestine - Witness Injustice: Connecting Struggles

We are hosting a witness trip with Sabeel led by Nyle Fort and Jonathan Kuttab this July! Experience the resilience and struggle for liberation of the Palestinian people. If you are curious and interested in joining please fill out the form below and share it with anyone who may be interested in being part of this journey. We will contact you very soon!

Dates:

  • July 8 - 17

Cities:

  • Jerusalem

  • Hebron

  • Bethlehem

  • Jericho

Key Places:

  • Um Al Kheir (Bedouin Palestinian village)

  • Tent of Nations

  • Al Aqsa

  • Afro-Palestinian Community

  • Aida Refugee Camp

Costs:

  • Early Bird: $250 Deposit + $1758 Registration (not including flight + extras)

  • Standard: $250 Deposit + $2000 Registration (not including flight + extras)


  • Objectives:

    • Worship with Palestinian Christians. The worship will be a time to join together to discuss how our faith applies to our lives today, especially in Palestine & Israel.

    • Experience the reality of joy, resistance, and struggle of the Palestinian community living in the Land of our Holy One – religious extremism, shrinking space, the wall, settlements, checkpoints, confiscated land and demolished homes, refugee camps, and environmental degradation

    • Learn about the loss of civil and property rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel

    • Meet and reflect with Palestinian Christians, Muslims, Samaritans, Jewish Israelis and internationals who partner with Sabeel to uplift international and humanitarian law

    • Act in solidarity with the Palestinian community.


Email chadcollins@fosna.org for questions and concerns.

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Book Launch with Jonathan Kuttab
Jun
28

Book Launch with Jonathan Kuttab

Our Executive Director Jonathan Kuttab is launching his new book, The Truth Shall Set You Free: The Story of a Palestinian Human Rights Lawyer Working for Peace & Justice in Palestine/Israel.

Join us on Zoom Wednesday, June 28th at 5:00pm PT/8:00pm ET!

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Apartheid-Free Communities: Launching a New Initiative to End Israeli Apartheid
Jun
6

Apartheid-Free Communities: Launching a New Initiative to End Israeli Apartheid

Apartheid-Free Communities: Launching a New Initiative to End Israeli Apartheid

Join AFSC on June 6th at 8:00 pm ET for the official launch of the Apartheid Free Communities Initiative. 

In late 2022, a coalition of faith groups in North America came together to respond to the emerging consensus among the international human rights community that Israel's treatment of the Palestinian people amounts to the Crime of Apartheid. Together, we drafted an Apartheid-Free pledge through which faith groups, organizations, and communities commit to dismantling Apartheid in Israel and Palestine.  Over 50 congregations, faith groups, and organizations have already signed the pledge. 

On June 6th, the 56th anniversary of Israel's occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, we are making our pledge public and calling on others to join us in our work to oppose all forms of racism while working to cut ties to Israel Apartheid.  

During the launch you will hear from faith leaders and activists including Jonathan Kuttab, Rev. Wendel Griffen, and Dov Baum about the importance of the pledge and how you can help build a wide anti-Apartheid movement throughout North America.

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Faith groups across the country pledge to end support of Israeli apartheid
Jun
1
to Jun 10

Faith groups across the country pledge to end support of Israeli apartheid

OAKLAND, CA (June 1, 2023)  On June 6 – the anniversary of the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem – a coalition of many faith groups and secular organizations will announce the public launch of the Apartheid-Free campaign. They are calling on congregations, faith communities, schools, and organizations to take a pledge to work against apartheid in all its forms and support an end to Israeli apartheid against Palestinians. The launch will be accompanied by an online event on June 6 at 5PM PT/8 PM ET. Participants and journalists can register here.

“Israeli apartheid devastates lives and destroys communities,” said Dov Baum, director of Economic Activism for the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC). “As an Israeli Jewish person myself, I see how its violence corrupts all levels of Israeli society. It is time for progressives in the U.S. to stop their misguided and indiscriminate support of this racist regime and call for true equality and freedom for all people in Palestine/Israel.”

Already, more than 65 congregations, faith groups, and organizations have come out today calling themselves "apartheid-free” and pledging to take action against Israeli apartheid. This includes three nationwide signatories – the United Church of Christ (UCC), South Central Yearly Meeting (Quaker) and the Alliance of Baptists – as well as Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist and Interfaith groups.  

“Some of the UCC’s Palestinian partners have named their situation as apartheid for years,” said Dr. Peter E. Makari, Global Relations Minister, Middle East and Europe Global Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and United Church of Christ. “It is imperative that we name the reality of laws and practices for what it is: apartheid – both as an international legal definition and as our moral responsibility to speak truth – as we accompany partners in their struggle for justice. As a church that has been privileged to enjoy partnerships with Palestinian Christians, among others, we continue to walk with them in solidarity, and supporting this Apartheid-Free campaign can be a part of that witness.”

The idea for an Apartheid-Free campaign took root in 2022, following the emerging consensus among the international human rights community that Israel’s treatment of the Palestinian people amounts to the crime of apartheid. An interdenominational coalition of faith groups in North America, convened by AFSC, came together to organize the pledge. This coalition includes Black Christians for Palestine, Community Peacemaker Teams (CPT), Episcopal Peace Fellowship – Palestine Israel Network (EPF PIN), Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA), Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (IPMN), Justice for Palestine and Israel Community of the Alliance of Baptists, Mennonite Palestine Israel Network (MennoPIN), Quaker Palestine Israel Network (QPIN), United Church of Christ Palestine Israel Network (UCC-PIN), United Methodists for Kairos Response (UMKR), and Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East (UUJME).

“Christian communities have a particular responsibility to support Palestinians since it is our religion that has been co-opted into a distorted and anti-Semitic interpretation through Christian Zionism,” said Rev. Allison Tanner, national organizer for the Apartheid-Free Communities Initiative. “Christian Zionists are by far the largest single supporters of Israel and have created the largest pro-Israel lobby in the country. It is time for Christians to rise up and say this violence can no longer be committed in our name.”

For decades, the Palestinian people have faced Israeli occupation enforced through racist and discriminatory legal regimes, forced displacement, blockade and movement restrictions, and systematic human rights abuses. The Apartheid-Free coalition has published a collection of resources about Israeli apartheid, including reports from all mainstream human rights organizations and legal experts explaining to use of this legal terminology, videos, webinars, and study guides.

Organizations who take the pledge also commit to take action to help end apartheid, including educational and advocacy efforts, faith-based initiatives, and divestment actions. Currently 69 organizations have taken the pledge, with many more expected in the coming weeks and months.

Learn more at https://apartheid-free.org/

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May
19
to May 26

US State Department Religious Freedom report blames the Israeli Occupation for Christian emigration

US State Department Religious Freedom report blames the Israeli Occupation for Christian emigration

https://milhilard.org/us-state-department-religious-freedom-report-blames-the-occupation-for-christian-emigration/

By Daoud Kuttab

The most recent 2022 US State Department report on religious freedom places the cause of Palestinian Christian emigration squarely on the Israeli occupiers and their policies.

Below are some excerpts concerning Christian Palestinians from the 59-page report about the situation in Palestine. The full report titled The West Bank and Gaza 2022 International Religious Freedom Report can be seen here.

 Christian presence under threat

The Christian heads of churches in Jerusalem continued to raise public concerns that the Christian presence and Holy Sites in Jerusalem were under threat. The statements identified pressure points on Christians that included violence and harassment against clergy and worshipers by Israeli extremists; vandalism and desecration of church properties; attempts by settler organizations to obtain strategic property in and around the Christian quarter of the Old City and the Mount of Olives; and restrictions on residency permits for Palestinians as part of Israel’s Citizenship and Entry Law. This law remained an especially acute problem, according to church leaders, because of the small Christian population and consequent tendency to marry other Christians from the West Bank or elsewhere (i.e., Christians who held neither citizenship nor residency). Local Christian leaders state that Palestinian Christian emigration has continued at rapid rates.  

Palestinian Christians in numbers

 According to various estimates, 50,000 Christian Palestinians reside in the West Bank and Jerusalem, and according to media reports and religious communities, there are approximately 1,300 Christians residing in Gaza.

Christian religious courts handle legal matters relating to personal status, including inheritance, marriage, dowry, divorce, and child support. For Muslims, Sharia determines personal status law, while various ecclesiastical courts rule on personal status matters for Christians.

By law, members of one religious group may submit a personal status dispute to a different religious group for adjudication if the disputants agree it is appropriate to do so.

PA has unwritten understandings of Palestinian evangelical churches

The PA maintains some unwritten understandings with churches that are not officially recognized, based on the basic principles of the status quo agreements, including with the Assemblies of God, Nazarene Church, and some evangelical Christian churches, which may operate freely. Some of these groups may perform some official functions, such as issuing marriage licenses. Churches not

recognized by the PA generally must obtain special one-time permission from the PA to perform marriages or adjudicate personal status matters if these groups want the actions to be recognized by and registered with the PA. The churches may not proselytize.

Controversial Park opposed by religious leaders

On February 18, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theopolis III, Franciscan Custos of the Holy Land Francesco Patton, and Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem Nourhan Manougian sent a letter to Israeli Environmental Protection Minister Tamar Zandberg, calling on her to stop a planned expansion of the Jerusalem Walls National Park in the Old City of Jerusalem to parts of the Mount of Olives, where there are Christian holy sites. In the letter, church leaders said the proposed plan was an attack on Christians and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem and seemed to be “orchestrated, advanced, and promoted by entities whose sole purpose is to confiscate and nationalize one of the holiest sites for Christianity and later its nature.”

The Israel Nature and Parks Authority, which is promoting the project, said the expansion was designed to restore long-neglected lands and better preserve historical landscapes, and that it would not harm the church properties incorporated into the national park. According to a February 21 Times of Israel report, the authority said it would withdraw the plan. The plan remained, however, on the Jerusalem Local Planning Committee calendar for discussion in 2023.

The positive role of Christian organizations

Religious organizations providing education, health care, and other humanitarian relief and social services to Palestinians in and around East Jerusalem continued to state that the physical barrier begun by Israel during the Second Intifada in 2003 impeded their work, particularly south of Jerusalem in West Bank Christian communities around Bethlehem.

Barrier and checkpoints

Clergy members stated the barrier and additional checkpoints restricted their movements between Jerusalem and West Bank churches and monasteries as well as the movement of congregants between their homes and places of worship. Christian leaders continued to state the barrier hindered Bethlehem-area Christians from reaching the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. They also said it made visits to Christian sites in Bethlehem difficult for Palestinian Christians who lived on the west side of the barrier. Foreign pilgrims and religious aid workers also reported difficulty or delays accessing Christian religious sites in the West Bank because of the barrier.

The Israeli government previously stated it constructed the barrier as an act of self-defense and that it was highly effective in preventing terrorist attacks in Israel.

During the year, Christian expatriate workers in Israeli settlements continued to complain that lack of public transportation on Saturdays prevented them from participating in religious activities and worship in Jerusalem.

Gaza permit quotas for Christians

In recent years, Israeli authorities issued permits for some Christians to exit Gaza to attend religious services in Jerusalem or the West Bank and for Muslims from the West Bank to enter Jerusalem for Ramadan. During the year, Israeli officials reported they issued 8,000 permits for Palestinians to enter Israel from the West Bank during Christmas season, and 500 family permits for West Bank residents to enter Gaza. Israeli officials reported they issued 500 permits for Christians in Gaza to enter Israel during Christmas.

Gisha reported that Israel designated a quota of 500 permits for Christians in Gaza to visit Jerusalem for Easter celebrations. They reported that some applicants received permits while their family members were left waiting for a response or denied outright, forcing them to choose between forgoing family and religious visits or leaving their family members behind during the travel. During Christmas, Gisha reported that Israel issued 649 permits for Christians to exit Gaza for the holiday.

Marriage of Jerusalemite Christians to West Bank Residents

According to Christian religious leaders, this situation remained an especially acute problem for Christians because of their small population and consequent tendency to marry Christians from the West Bank or elsewhere (i.e., Christians who held neither citizenship nor residency). Christian religious leaders expressed concern that this was a significant element in the continuing decline of the Christian population, including in Jerusalem, which negatively affected the long-term viability of Christian communities.

Factors causing emigration

According to NGOs, community members, and media commentators, factors contributing to Christian emigration included political instability, the inability to obtain residency permits for spouses due to the Law of Citizenship and Entry, the limited ability of Christian communities in the Jerusalem area to expand due to building restrictions, difficulties Christian clergy experienced in obtaining Israeli visas and residency permits, loss of confidence in the peace process, and economic hardships created by the establishment of the barrier and the imposition of travel restrictions. The Israeli government previously stated such difficulties stemmed from the “complex political and security reality” and not from any restrictions on the Christian community.

Read entire report

https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/441219-WEST-BANK-AND-GAZA-2022-INTERNATIONAL-RELIGIOUS-FREEDOM-REPORT.pdf

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Freedom to Worship: A Call of the Churches
May
9
to May 31

Freedom to Worship: A Call of the Churches

Freedom to Worship: A Call of the Churches 

We, the undersigned Christian organizations and churches, stand with the churches of Palestine in their rejection of recent restrictions on their religious freedoms and the attacks on their houses of worship, cemeteries, and clergy. 

One of the highlights of Passion Week is the Ceremony of Lights on Holy Saturday, where people gather together in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher with unlit candles and lanterns as they wait for the priest to emerge from the empty tomb with two candles carrying the Holy Fire. The fire is then passed from one believer to the next, throughout the streets and to various communities, and even to other churches in Palestine. The fire is even flown to Cyprus and Greece, where it is met with prayers and jubilation. During the Ceremony of the Holy Fire this year, the Israeli police arbitrarily restricted the number of worshippers in the Church, which can hold 10,000 worshipers, to a mere 1800 (with 1200 more in the courtyard) and physically prevented many worshippers from reaching the holy site to participate in the ceremony. They also canceled, without explanation, the permits they had previously issued to 700 Gazan Christians to come to Jerusalem for this occasion. The Greek Patriarchate rejected the excuse of the Israeli authorities that this was a safety measure, pointing out that there has never been a stampede or serious incident during this ceremony for centuries. 

These heavy handed restrictions and deviations from the historic Status Quo Agreement came on the heels of a sharp increase in attacks on Christian Churches, cemeteries, and clergy by Jewish fanatics. An Anglican cemetery was recently desecrated; another church was vandalized, and the statues of the virgin Mary and Christ were broken and smashed to the ground by a Jewish fanatic. The Armenian Convent was also vandalized, as hateful anti-Christian messages were spray painted on its walls. Christian nuns and clergy report multiple incidents of being attacked, humiliated, and spat on by Jewish settlers, particularly in the Old City of Jerusalem. The current government seems to handle such incidents, where the perpetrators are usually known or briefly arrested, with tolerance and timidity, and many fanatics feel that they have powerful representatives favoring their views within the current government, particularly its Minister of Police and other officials. These attacks seem to mirror other restrictions and attacks on the Al Aqsa Mosque and attempts by Jewish extremists to alter the sensitive arrangements governing access to these Holy Places. 

Despite public announcements that it will respect the religious freedom of all groups, and that it does not intend to alter the Status Quo Agreement, the behavior of the current government and the public pronouncements of some of its ministers are a source of serious concern. The impunity with which such attacks have been met must end, and the Israeli authorities must realize that there is a price to be paid for failure to respect the religious freedom of all people, including Christians. 

We call on all churches to stand in solidarity with the Christians of the Holy Land and we call on our elected representatives to communicate these concerns directly to the Israeli government. 

The political situation in the Holy land is precarious enough and we should not enable religious zealots and fanatics to inflame matters and use the power and control of the Israeli Government over the Holy Sites to disrespect the religious rights of others in their attempt to assert domination and control. 

Respectfully, 

The Undersigned 


Organizational Endorsements: 

Americans Committed to Justice and Truth 

Anglican Pacifist Fellowship 

Antiochian Orthodox Church of North America 

Beit Sahour USA 

Christian Council of Delmarva 

Christian-Jewish Allies for a Just Peace in Israel/Palestine 

Cleveland Chapter of Irish Northern Aid 

Community Peacemaker Teams 

Coventry Deanery Justice & Peace Group 

Dallas Palestine Coalition 

Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio 

Friends of Mariam Inc. 

Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA) 

Indiana Center for Middle East Peace 

Interfaith Council for Peace in the Middle East 

Iowans for a Free Palestine 

Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Joining Hands for Justice in Palestine/Israel 

Lauren Faith Smith Ministry for Nonviolence 

Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns 

Mennonite Palestine Israel Network 

NorCal Sabeel 

Palestinian American Organizations Network 

Palestinian Christian Alliance for peace 

Pax Christi - Deutsche Sektion e.V. 

Pax Christi England and Wales 

Pax Christi Gruppe Oldenburg 

Pax Christi International 

Pax Christi New York State 

Pax Christi Northern CA 

Pax Christi USA 

St. Louis Friends of Bethlehem 

Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East 

United Methodists for Kairos Response (UMKR) 

First Baptist Church in Jamaica Plain 

First United Methodist Church Boulder - Supporters for Palestine Peace with Justice 

Good Shepherd Presbyterian Church 

Hapton Methodist Church 

Hope 4 All Interfaith Community 

Northeast Kingdom Quaker Meeting 

Royal Palm Christian Church (DOC) 

St. Columba Catholic Church 

Trinity Episcopal Church, Asbury Park, NJ 

Valley View Church 

Westminster Presbyterian Church 

Individual Endorsements: 

Bo Fauth, FOSNA, Episcopal Peace Fellowship Palestine Israel Network, Co-Chair 

Curtis Marwood, The United Church of Canada, Reverend 

David Benedict, St. Martin's Episcopal Church, Reverend 

Ghassan Tarazi, Ravensworth Baptist Church 

John Anderson, Israel/Palestine Mission Network PC(USA)-Bay Area

Rev. Dr. Marie Dennis, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns

Director Marina Bühler-Miko, Muslim Voice for Peace & Reconciliation "MVPR"

Merle Showers, University United Methodist Church Buffalo, Reverend

Newland Smth Smith, St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Evanston, IL

Randall Heyn-Lamb, Episcopal Peace Fellowship-Palestine Israel Network, Steering Committee Member 

Rev. Gail Bennett, Episcopal Church, Reverend 

Rev. Anne Hoganson, United Church of Canada, Reverend 

Rev. Dr. FAHED Abuakel, Presbyterian minister in Atlanta, Past Moderator of the 214th General Assembly of the Presbyterian church USA 2002-2003

Rev. Jerald Stinson, First Congregational Church of Long Beach, CA, Senior Minister Emeritus 

Rev. Katherine Cunningham, Christian Zionism Working Group of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 

Rev. Steve Berube, St. Paul's United Church 

Susan Elias, Christ Lutheran Church, Lay Minister 

The Rev. David Mesenbring, St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, Pastor for Church in the World Ministries 

Tiffany Hunsinger, University of Dayton 

Ann Farr, Pax Christi England and Wales, Chair 

Ashlee Wiest-Laird, First Baptist Church in Jamaica Plain, Reverend

Bea Foster, Hapton Methodist Church, Steward 

Brenda Mehos, First United Methodist Church Boulder - Supporters for Palestine Peace with Justice FUMC Palestine Peace with Justice Leader

Brian Grieves, Friends of Sabeel, Priest 

Carin B Delfs, Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio, Sister, SSG

Chad Collins, Valley View Church, Pastor 

Chase Danford, Trinity Episcopal Church, Asbury Park, NJ, Rector

Dale Valaskovic, Good Shepherd Presbyterian Church, Elder

Dana Ashrawi, Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East, President

Dennise Burgess, Pax Christi Northern CA, President 

Donna Olsen, Hope 4 All Interfaith Community, Senior Minister Enid Gordon, Methodist Church, Reverend 

Evalee Mickey, Pax Christi USA 

Genie Silver, Christian-Jewish Allies for a Just Peace in Israel/Palestine, Member (designated to sign for CJ-A) 

George Makhlouf, Antiochian Orthodox Church of North America, V. Rev. Fr.

Gerold König, Pax Christi - Deutsche Sektion e.V., Bundesvorsitzender

Howard Stafford, Stafford Farms Limited, Managing Director

Jesse Wheeler, Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA), Executive Administrator 

Joe Roos, Mennonite Palestine Israel Network, Chair 

Johanna Collins, Valley View Church, Elder 

John Conway, Cleveland chapter of Irish Northern Aid, Chairman John Newton Hickox, Americans Committed to Justice and Truth, Director

Johnny Zokovitch, Pax Christi USA, Executive Director 

Jonathan Kuttab, Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA), Executive Director 

Katharine Davies Samway, NorCal Sabeel, Leadership Team and Steering Committee Member 

Klaus Hagedorn, Pax Christi Gruppe Oldenburg 

Lea Koesterer, St/. Louis Friends of Bethlehem, Chairperson

M. Theresa Basile, United Methodists for Kairos Response (UMKR), Communications Director; Education Co-Chair 

Mark Smith, Lauren Faith Smith Ministry for Nonviolence, Executive Director

Martha Inés Romero, Pax Christi International, Secretary General

Meg Bowerman, St. Columba Catholic Church, Parishioner

Michael Spath, Indiana Center for Middle East Peace, Executive Director

Mohammad Abd-Elsalam, Palestinian American Organizations Network, President 

Muriel Schmid, Community Peacemaker Teams, Administrative Director

Murjan Abu Mahmoud, Dallas Palestine Coalition, Board Member

Nahida H Gordon, Interfaith Council for Peace in the Middle East, Treasurer

Omar Altalib, Altalib Associates, CEO 

Paschal Somers, Coventry Deanery Justice & Peace Group, Chair

Rev. Alex Awad, Palestinian Christian Alliance for Peace

Rev. Dr. Robert Diedrichs, Iowans for a Free Palestine, Member 

Robert Hall, Christian Council of Delmarva, President 

Rola Al Ashkar, Westminster Pres, Rev Rola Al Ashkar 

Rosemarie Pace, Pax Christi New York State, Coordinator 

Sarah Humphrey, Joining Hands for Justice in Palestine/Israel, Board Chair

Steven Blinder, Royal Palm Christian Church (DOC), Senior Pastor

Sue Claydon, Anglican Pacifist Fellowship, Chair 

Susan Gunn, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, Director

Susan Rhodewalt, Northeast Kingdom Quaker Meeting, Ministry and Care, Clerk 

Susan Wilder, Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Co-Moderator 

Walid Hayek, Beit Sahour USA 

Wally Yazbak, Friends of Mariam Inc., President 

Adrian Devlin 

Al Shayne 

Amrit Khalsa 

Audrey Lounder 

Barbara Taylor 

Bill Both 

Carol Wesley, The Rev.

Dr. Carolyn Bradley 

Catherine McCormack

Connie Raper 

David Small 

Debbie Ryce 

Doug Mitchell 

E Jacob Chacko 

Ellen Franzen 

Grace Ukoha 

Helen Burke 

Holly Stuart 

Jeffrey Courter 

Jl Angell 

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John Moore 

Leslee Abud 

Louise Savage 

Mario Hazboun

Dr. Martin Fontaine

Mary Arendt 

Michael Stevens

Nancy N Brothers

Roberta Swanson

Scott Baier 

Seth Morrison 

Sima Bakalian

Peter Gunther 

Susan Nchubiri

Susan Stout 

Teresa Gill 

Tina Liakopoulos

Tracy McLellan

Tony Segura 

Wendy Jaghab

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NorCal Sabeel: TEA for Palestine: Truth, Education, Action
May
6

NorCal Sabeel: TEA for Palestine: Truth, Education, Action

TEA for Palestine: Truth, Education, Action

Support the new Palestine Studies Program at U.C. Berkeley and Pal Trek. Music by ASWAT, the premier Arab music ensemble. Refreshments.

Palestinians in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza continue to live under an increasingly horrifying Israeli apartheid regime. This TEA for Palestine: Truth, Education, Action is a fundraising event to support future leaders in the U.S. who will mobilize their talents on behalf of Palestinian rights. The SF Bay Area premier Arab music ensemble, ASWAT, will be playing and there will be delicious refreshments. Please join us! If you can’t join us, please consider making a donation. All expenses associated with this event are donated.

All funds collected are tax exempt and will be directed to the new Palestine Studies Program at U.C. Berkeley and to Pal Trek.

The Palestine Studies Program has been launched after two years of preparation. It is a groundbreaking effort, and organizers are now raising funds and preparing for its first course offerings under the Department of Ethnic Studies. It aims to:

• Build an academic program promoting the history, narratives, and experiences of Palestinians, within the scope of Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies.

• Provide scholarships for BA, MA, and PhD students.

• Sponsor faculty exchanges for teachers in Palestinian universities.

• Support research, teaching, and programming related to Palestinian studies.

• Foster the study of Palestinian groups in local, national, and global contexts.

• Support library collections on Palestine.

Pal Trek, an organization founded at Harvard in 2018, aspires to highlight Palestinian experience and offset the dominant Israeli narrative in U.S. politics and media by partially subsidizing the cost of impactful trips to Palestine for students in fields such as law and business. So far, 2,000 graduate students from eight elite universities have gone on Pal Treks. The goal is to expand the program to most universities in the U.S.

This event is hosted by NorCal Sabeel. Current co-sponsors include: Middle East Children Alliance (MECA), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) Bay Area, American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) Bay Area, Friends of Wadi Foquin, The Islamophobia Studies Center, & Arab Cultural and Community Center (ACCC).

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UUJME Presents: People of Faith Responding to Apartheid
Apr
14

UUJME Presents: People of Faith Responding to Apartheid

Webinar - People of Faith Responding to Apartheid

Hosted by Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East:

Palestinian rights group Al-Haq, Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, and the global organizations Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have reported that Israel has created a situation of apartheid. Unitarian Universalists are urged to center Palestinians as their oppression increases. Panelists will give an update on the situation on the ground in Palestine/Israel and then guide attendees in how they can take action as people of faith. A new initiative, Apartheid-Free Communities, will be introduced.

This event will be recorded with a live audience for on-demand viewing later during the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association. Panelists include the following esteemed individuals:

  • Jonathan Kuttab 

  • Dov Baum 

  • Rev. John H. Thomas 

  • Rabbi Brian Walt 

The moderator will be Dana Fisher Ashrawi, UUJME President.

You will receive an email acknowledging your registration. The Zoom link will be emailed closer to the date of the webinar.

Please share the link to this registration page: https://www.uujme.org/apartheidwebinar 

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Nonviolence International Presents: The Crisis of Apartheid: Report Back from Palestine
Mar
28

Nonviolence International Presents: The Crisis of Apartheid: Report Back from Palestine

The Crisis of Apartheid: Report Back from Palestine

Tuesday, March 28th from 10:30 am - 12:00 pm ET 

In 2023 Israeli apartheid is intensifying. While Palestinians remain steadfast on their land, the new far right government is outright encouraging settlers to violently attack Palestinians and giving the green light to Occupation forces to carry out explicit ethnic cleansing policies. As more and more people around the world turn their attention to Palestine and demand accountability for apartheid, we will gather for a report back from two Palestinian experts on nonviolence and conflict resolution about their recent experiences on the ground.

If possible please review one of our experts, Jonathan Kuttab's recent, moving travel blog posts before joining us. If you haven’t yet read his visionary and important short book, Beyond the Two State Solution, please consider doing so. It is available for free on our site in Arabic, Hebrew, and English. If you want a print copy, we urge you to support this wonderful DC area book store. If you don’t have time to read the book, please read the Executive Summary or watch this under 5 minute video where Jonathan speaks to NVI interns about why he wrote this book at this time. 


Our Experts

Jonathan Kuttab is co-founder of Nonviolence International, the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq, and Just Peace Advocates. A well-known international human rights attorney, he has practiced in the US, Palestine, and Israel. He serves as the Executive Director of Friends of Sabeel North America, and as a board member of Nonviolence International and Just Peace Advocates. He was the head of the Legal Committee negotiating the Cairo Agreement of 1994 between Israel and the PLO. Jonathan is the author of Beyond the Two State Solution, which articulates a vision of a binational state that challenges both Zionism and Palestinian Nationalism. This book invites readers to begin a new conversation based on reality: how will two peoples live together in some sort of unified state?

Mohammed Abu Nimer is an internationally renowned expert on conflict resolution and dialogue for peace. He serves as a professor of International Peace and Conflict Resolution at the American University School of International Service, and as a Senior Advisor to the KAICIID Dialogue Centre, an international organization that specializes in interreligious and intercultural dialogue. Mohammed is also a member of NVI's Board of Directors. Prof. Abu-Nimer's research has focused on a wide array of topics in peacebuilding and conflict resolution and has been both author and editor of more than 13 books on faith-based and interfaith peace-building. His more recent areas of focus have included faith-based peacebuilding, interfaith dialogue in peacebuilding and building social cohesion, and pedagogical considerations on incorporating peace and forgiveness education in the Arab world.

Host

Tess Greenwood joined NVI’s staff in August 2022 as the Office and Intern Manager. Tess is a community organizer with a background in youth leadership development and anti-Occupation activism. She holds a BA in Labor Studies from Hampshire College. When she's not working with NVI, Tess organizes with IfNotNow, the movement of American Jews organizing their community to end U.S. support for Israeli Apartheid.

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FOSNA Book Discussion: “Protecting Human Rights in Occupied Palestine: Working Through the United Nations”
Mar
5

FOSNA Book Discussion: “Protecting Human Rights in Occupied Palestine: Working Through the United Nations”

Join our online book discussion of Protecting Human Rights in Occupied Palestine: Working Through the United Nations by UN Rapporteurs John Dugard, Michael Lynk, and Richard A. Falk, with a foreword by Francesca Albanese, on March 5th via Zoom.

12pm PT / 3pm ET / 10pm Jerusalem

Panelists include:

  • Francesca Albanese - International lawyer, academic, and current United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories since 2022

  • Richard A. Falk - Professor Emeritus of International Law at Princeton University and former UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the occupied Palestinian Territories.

  • Jonathan Kuttab - FOSNA Executive Director, international human rights attorney

  • Michael Lynk - Author, Associate Professor of Law at Western University, former UN Special Rapporteur for Palestinian territories

Thank you to our co-sponsors: Pax Christi USA | Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East (UUJME) | Kairos USA | Indiana Center for Middle East Peace | EPF PIN | MennoPIN | UCC PIN | United Methodists for Kairos Response (UMKR) | Disciples Palestine Israel Network

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Holy Land Service with Jonathan Kuttab
Jan
29

Holy Land Service with Jonathan Kuttab

Holy Land Service with Jonathan Kuttab

The Middle East Working Group presents their annual Holy Land service for three Toronto United Churches on Jan 29 at Trinity- St Paul's, 427 Bloor St W, Toronto. The guest speaker is Jonathan Kuttab, executive director of Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA). A discussion with Jonathan will follow the 10:30 am (ET) service. You are welcome to join in person or online.

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Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project Presents: "Book Discussion: Beyond the Two-State Solution with Jonathan Kuttab"
Jan
25

Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project Presents: "Book Discussion: Beyond the Two-State Solution with Jonathan Kuttab"

Join Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project and Jonathan Kuttab for an online book discussion of “Beyond the Two-State Solution” by Jonathan Kuttab on January 25 at 6:00pm MT via Zoom.

Get your free electronic copy of “Beyond the Two-State Solution” at JonathanKuttab.org

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Is Israel an Apartheid State?
Jan
15

Is Israel an Apartheid State?

Is Israel an Apartheid State?

Join Voices For the Holy Land's January Film Salon on January 15 at 12pm PT / 3pm ET.

Does Israel’s treatment of Palestinians constitute a form of apartheid–the systematic segregation and discrimination of a population on the basis of race, first put into place in South Africa? Such is the claim of the UN, Amnesty International, B’Tselem, Human Rights Watch, and journalists from a range of media. The International Criminal Court has labeled apartheid “a crime against humanity.” Two short documentary films explore the separate and distinct laws, physical infrastructure, civil systems and military enforcement applied to Palestinians in Israel and in the occupied territories. If this is apartheid, what is the authority of the UN and the ICC to adjudicate Israel’s violation of international law? Israel’s newly elected right-wing government promises more extreme forms of discrimination, exclusion, and violence directed at Palestinian citizens of Israel and in the occupied territories.

Watch the film for free at your convenience | Join the Q&A Discussion with an expert panel.

Saleh Hijazi: Former Deputy Regional Direct - MENA at Amnesty International

Michael Lynk: Author, Associate Professor of Law at Western University, former UNHCR Special Rapporteur for Palestinian Territories

Edwin Arrison: Anglican Priest, Development Officer - Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation

Jonathan Kuttab (moderator):  Attorney, author, Exec. Dir. Friends of Sabeel North America

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