English October 31 -2019

Sabeel Wave of Prayer

31^st October 2019

In Gaza on Friday 25^th October, 95 Palestinian civilians, including 43 children, a woman, 2 paramedics and a journalist, were shot and injured by Israeli forces, who fired live rounds against peaceful Palestinian protesters at the 80th Great March of Return. According to Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) documentation, the number of victims increased to 214 since the outbreak of the protests on 30 March 2018, including 46 children, 2 women, 9 persons with disabilities, 4 paramedics and 2 journalists. Additionally, 14,453 were wounded, including 3,592 children, 383 women, 250 paramedics and 216 journalists, noting that many of those injured had sustained multiple injuries on separate occasions.

·         Lord, we continue to pray for the safety of the protestors and for them to continue to espouse non-violent means to achieve their demands. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

This week’s Kumi Now initiative focuses on the work of the Jahalin Solidarity organisation. This group protects the rights of the Bedouin and other Palestinians living under the occupation. It continues to support the Bedouin village of Al Khan al-Ahmar where the residents live under constant threat of forced eviction by the Israeli military authorities driven by illegal settler organisations.

·         Dear Lord, we thank you for those who care for the human rights of the poor and the persecuted. We are thankful for those working with the Jahalin organisation who listen to the cry of the poor and respond with aid and support. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

On the 23rd of October, the Israeli authorities issued 140 demolition orders to the homes and a mosque belonging to residents of Rahat in the Negev. The houses are all owned by two Bedouin families and their residents have been living there for more than seventy years.

·         Lord, we pray that the persecution of the Bedouin by the Israeli authorities will cease. We pray that a new Israeli government will respect the human rights of all the people living in Palestine/Israel, including the Bedouin. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The home of Abu Hamid was demolished for the second time in two years by Israeli soldiers in the first week of October. Abu Hamid was sentenced to life imprisonment for critically injuring an Israeli soldier in an army raid in the Al-Am’ari refugee camp near Ramallah. Ronan Lubarsky, an Israeli soldier, died of his wounds two days after the raid.

·         Lord, we are aggrieved by the treatment of those living in Palestinian refugee camps by Israeli occupation forces. While violence cannot be condoned, the sentences passed down by the military court system are harsh in the extreme. We pray that international lawmakers will speak out against this form of collective punishment being meted out by the Israeli military courts. Lord in your mercy...hear our prayer.

Last week a court in Ramallah ordered the blocking of 59 Palestinian websites, blogs and Facebook pages in which opposition to the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas had been expressed. The prosecution argued that such material could be used to incite lawlessness. The Press Association and human rights groups have appealed the decision.

·         Lord, we pray that all Palestinians will continue to safeguard freedom of expression among their people and that they will resist moves to censure justified criticism. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

On Friday, the 25th of October, residents in the Palestinian village of Yatma, south of Nablus, woke up to find they had been targeted by vandals from the nearby Israeli settlement outpost of Yitzhar. This was the second attack in three days. Thirty cars had windows broken and tyres slashed, with Hebrew slogans spray painted on the vehicles.

·         Lord, we pray for an end to the hate crimes carried out by illegal Israeli settlers against the Palestinians. We pray that the Israeli authorities will follow up this vandalism and hold to account those who breach the peace in the area. Lord, in your mercy...hear our prayer.

The Episcopal Church in the US adopted and implemented an investment screen on the 22nd of October. This will ensure that they do not invest in companies who profit from the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories.

·         Lord, we thank you for the tools to review the investments of the church and that more and more churches are beginning to use them. We pray that your church across the world will continue to pray and take morally responsible decisions on stewarding the resources they are given. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

·         We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Canada and the United States of America. Lord in your mercy...hear our prayer.