6/8/09 - English

Before sunrise on Sunday morning, Israeli forces evicted seventy Palestinians from their homes in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Israeli forces also demolished the al-Kurd family protest tent for the sixth time. The al-Kurds were evicted from their home last November. We pray that Israel will end this campaign against the citizens of East Jerusalem. We thank God for the strong condemnation from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and from churches around the world and encourage them to stand firm and act to end this injustice.

The Israeli Knesset passed a “land reform” law on Monday that allows for privatization of state owned land. This threatens to result in the sale of real state expropriated from the Palestinian Arab population in 1948. Such action would violate the property rights of Palestinian refugees. We pray that this law will be overturned in court and that justice will prevail.

For more information, visit: http://www.adalah.org/eng/pressreleases/pr.php?file=09_08_03

This week, Fatah is holding its first conference in the West Bank in two decades. Approximately 2000 delegates are meeting in Bethlehem to discuss the party’s new political platform and to hold elections for leadership positions. In spite of the absence of many representatives from Gaza, we pray that the week’s events will strengthen Palestinian unity across political divides and will result in positive progress towards achieving a just peace for all.

Summer is a time of transition at Sabeel. In this season, we must say farewell to some of our international volunteers and greet new people who will be joining our staff. We thank God for the hard work and personal sacrifices offered by our friends. And we are grateful for the unique strengths and experiences offered by each individual who joins us for some time before returning to their homes to share Sabeel message of justice and peace.

This week we join with the World Council of Churches in praying for: 

Canada and the United States