17th of February, 2022
This year Kumi Now is taking a fresh look at the different
challenges faced by Palestinians and finding out from them about the innovative
ways they have come up with to overcome them. On Tuesday, the 15th of February,
Vera Baboun, who served as the first female mayor of Bethlehem, was featured in
the new Palestinian Innovator Series.
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Lord, we pray that this new platform for Palestinians
through the Kumi Now series will give us all a deeper understanding of the
struggles and opportunities faced by a population which has lived under Israeli
occupation for over seventy years. Lord, in your mercy…
Sabeel has been developing its Annual Plan in a workshop in
the Jerusalem office during this week.
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Lord, we pray for your wisdom and guidance for the staff of
Sabeel as they come together to decide on their priorities and where they
should focus their energy this year. Lord, in your mercy…
Michael Benyair, a former Israeli Attorney General, has
recently spoken out about Israel’s apartheid rule in the occupied Palestinian
territory. In an interview published by Ireland’s ‘The Journal’ magazine he
stated, ‘Between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, it is Israel that
is permanently depriving millions of Palestinians of their civil and political
rights. This is Israeli apartheid.’
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Lord, we thank you for the courage of Michael Benyair to
speak out about the ‘moral abomination of apartheid’ in Israel. We pray that
more and more witnesses, Israeli, Palestinian and international will speak out
about their experience of the occupation. Lord in your mercy..
On Saturday, the !2th of February, the United Nations
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the occupied Palestinian
territory reported that the Israeli authorities had demolished, confiscated or forced
owners to demolish 53 Palestinian-owned homes in Area C of the occupied West
Bank and East Jerusalem. The authorities cite the reason for the demolitions is
the lack of Israeli building permits, (which Palestinians find almost
impossible to obtain). The demolitions affected the livelihoods of 400
Palestinians and displaced 26 people, including 13 children. Some of the
structures that were torn down were temporary shelters, which had been provided
as humanitarian assistance to families whose homes had already been demolished.
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Lord, we cry out to you as we hear of Palestinian families
having their homes and temporary shelters demolished. It is hard to think of
the despair and discouragement they face this winter after such treatment. We
pray for an end to inhumane policies of the Israeli authorities. Lord, in your
mercy…
‘Coalition-stop settlements’ is a
broad alliance of NGOs, grassroots movements, trades unions and politicians who
have come together to halt the annexation of the occupied Palestinian territory.
On Sunday, the 20th of February, they are launching the European Citizen’s
Initiative. They are aiming to get one million signatures to support their
petition. They are appealing to the European Commission to start respecting
international law by stopping all trade with illegal settlements.
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Lord, we give thanks for all those who continue to work for
justice and peace through non-violent means. Help us to place our trust in your
living and active word and to advocate for justice through our governments and
institutions. Lord, in your mercy..
During the first month of 2022 the Israeli authorities have
arrested 502 Palestinians, according to prisoner advocacy groups. Among the
detainees were 6 women and 54 children, one of whom was younger than twelve-years-old.
There are now 4,500 Palestinian detainees in Israeli military prisons, 500 of
whom are held on administrative detention. Many prisoners are suffering from
Covid, with 500 cases reported in Ofer Prison alone.
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Lord, so many Palestinian families are affected by
imprisonment under the Israeli military court system. We can only imagine the
anxiety and concern of the Palestinian family whose young son is now in a
military prison far from home. We pray for an end to the occupation and the
dismantling of this oppressive and alienating system. Lord, in your mercy…
Stanford University in the US has announced that the
scientist Bassam Dally is now ranked in the top two per cent of scientists
across the world. Bassam is a Palestinian- Australian academic and his family
originated from Kafr Yassif, near Galilee. His research currently focuses on
the use of renewable energy sources to decarbonise pollution from heavy
industries. Alongside his academic work he has continued to support Palestine.
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Lord, we thank you for the gifts and hard work of Bassam
Dally which has brought this recent academic recognition. We thank you that he
still finds time to advocate for his Palestinian brothers and sisters. Lord, in
your mercy…
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We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers
for the countries of Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. Lord, in your
mercy…
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