February 14th News Bulletin

Israeli hostages' families demanded their release at a protest on a highway in Tel Aviv on Thursday.

Hamas says it will continue releasing Israeli hostages under Gaza deal

BBC

“Hamas has said it is committed to implementing the Gaza ceasefire deal with Israel and will continue releasing hostages as scheduled, raising hopes that a resumption of the war can be averted. Following talks in Cairo, the Palestinian armed group said mediators from Egypt and Qatar had confirmed they would "remove obstacles". Egyptian and Qatari reports also said gaps had been bridged. An Israeli government spokesman did not comment on the reports but stated that if Hamas did not free three living hostages on Saturday then the ceasefire would end.Israel's prime minister made a similar ultimatum on Tuesday after Hamas said it was postponing releases over what it claimed were Israeli violations.”

People walk and vehicles move along a destroyed road past collapsed buildings in the west of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, Feb. 11, 2025.
Bashar Taleb/AFP via Getty Images

'Egypt to offer Trump Gaza reconstruction plan without Palestinian displacement

ABC News

“Egypt plans to "present a comprehensive vision for the reconstruction" of the Gaza Strip that does not require the displacement of Palestinians, the country's foreign ministry said. Cairo said it will work with President Donald Trump's administration "to achieve a comprehensive and just peace in the region by reaching a just settlement of the Palestinian cause that upholds the rights of the region's peoples," the statement posted to X on Tuesday said. Cairo's reconstruction proposal will ensure "the Palestinian people remain in their homeland" and will align "with their legitimate and legal rights," the statement said."

Screen Grab showing the King of Jordan, Abdullah II, meeting with President Trump. 

Jordan, Arab nations oppose Palestinian displacement, Abdullah says after Trump meeting

The Hill

"King Abdullah II of Jordan said Tuesday that Arab nations are unified in their opposition to displacing Palestinians from Gaza, following a meeting with President Trump in which the president reiterated his plans for Palestinians to move elsewhere while the U.S. rebuilds Gaza. “I stressed that my foremost commitment is to Jordan, to its stability and to the well-being of Jordanians,” Abdullah posted on the social platform X after departing the White House."

Palestinians make their way through the Netzarim corridor after Israeli forces withdraw. Photograph: Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters

Israeli military withdraws from Netzarim corridor in Gaza

The Guardain

"Israeli forces have withdrawn from the strategic corridor that divides northern and southern Gaza, as part of a ceasefire plan that has brought a fragile pause to the 16-month war. On Sunday, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Hamas officials confirmed that the Israeli military had withdrawn from the Netzarim corridor, the 4-mile (6km) strip of land that Israel set up within weeks of the war and used as a military zone during the fighting.”

CMEP's 2025 Advocacy Summit Washington, D.C. March 19-20, 2025

Join Churches for Middle East Peace in Washington, DC at our annual Advocacy Summit March 19-20th, 2025. Day one of the summit, Wednesday, March 19th will include remarks from several expert speakers, updates from CMEP staff, and advocacy training. On Day Two, Thursday, March 20th, you will have the opportunity to put all you've learned into action on Capitol Hill, as you meet with the offices of your senators and representatives. 
One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent" (Acts 18:9)
This year, our Advocacy Summit recognizes the tremendous work our constituents and coalitions have done to speak out for justice and calls upon each of us to "keep on speaking" and working for a just peace for all people in the Holy Land. 

Come, Walk With Us

The Gaza Ceasefire Pilgrimage Movement launched on January 14, 2024, at Dominus Flevit, where Jesus wept over Jerusalem. Co-imagined by Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon (CMEP), Jarrod McKenna (Aotearoa Christians for Peace in Palestine), James Harris, Lisa Sharon Harper (Freedom Road), and Suzan Wahab (Palestinian Christians in Australia), the movement calls for deepened solidarity with Palestinians during Lent.

As we meditate on Jesus’ life and passion, we also acknowledge the suffering of our Palestinian siblings, affirming the testimony of Palestinian Christians and human rights organizations. We recognize the legal definitions of apartheid and military occupation and heed experts warning of genocidal intent in Gaza. Inspired by Jesus' teaching to let our yes mean yes, we speak plainly: we must call for an enduring ceasefire and an end to occupation so true peace can begin.

During Lent 2024, Gaza Ceasefire Pilgrimages took place in 100+ cities across all seven continents—a powerful, embodied act of prayer and solidarity. One year later, our work continues. Violence persists in the Holy Land, and we invite you once again to walk with us—in spirit, body, or mind—toward peace and justice.

CMEP will release more details about our Lent Devotional Booklet Soon! 

CMEP Wednesday Prayers for Peace

Churches for Middle East Peace invites you to pray for peace in light of recent events in Gaza, Israel, and the occupied Palestinian territories. Every Wednesday, 12:30 pm - 1:00 pm Eastern via Zoom.

 Live Thursday News Briefings

Please join us on Zoom for a weekly briefing on current news regarding the Hamas and Israel War. Hear from CMEP Staff and other experts. Every Thursday 10:00 am - 10:30 am Eastern. You can watch the most recent live briefing from January 16 concerning the ceasefire agreement HERE. If you want to see more of these be sure to attend live every Thursday!

Different areas of the stores were raided, including the children's book section. Photo by Iyad Muna.

Israeli police raid renowned Palestinian bookstores in East Jerusalem

CNN

“Israeli police raided two Palestinian bookstores in occupied east Jerusalem on Sunday, confiscating books and arresting one of the owners and his nephew, according to their family members. CCTV footage shared by the owners, four brothers from the Muna family, shows police officers putting books in trash bags at one of the branches of the Educational Bookshop, a decades-old respected institution with Arabic- and English-language branches.”

Israeli military vehicles advance through the streets of Tulkarem refugee camp as the army conducts a raid in the occupied West Bank city, February 6, 2025. (Wahaj Bani Moufleh)

Israel ravages West Bank refugee camps

+972 Magazine

“On Jan. 21, just two days after the Gaza ceasefire went into effect, Israel launched a major new military operation in the occupied West Bank. Originally focused on Jenin refugee camp, “Operation Iron Wall” has since expanded to three more camps in the northern West Bank: Tulkarem, Nur Shams, and Al-Far’a. These incursions, bolstered by air power, are aimed at repressing Palestinian armed resistance, which has grown stronger in the refugee camps in recent years. But Israeli forces have also wrought extreme destruction upon civilian infrastructure — bulldozing roads, leveling entire residential blocks, and forcibly displacing 40,000 people from their homes. In both intensity and scale, it is the largest Israeli military operation in the West Bank since the Second Intifada, which ended two decades ago.”

UNIFIL vehicles drive past the rubble of buildings in the southern Lebanese village of Yarin on February 9, 2025. (Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)

US denies Israel’s request to further push off deadline for Lebanon withdrawal

Times of Israel

“Israel asked the Trump administration on Monday for another extension to the deadline for the IDF withdrawal from southern Lebanon, but won’t get it, a US official told The Times of Israel.The response from Washington is that for now, it plans to stick to the February 18 deadline, said the US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday to discuss the matter.”

Mustafa al-Moussa, who served in the HTS-affiliated government of the northwest, Houda Atassi, co-founder of International Humanitarian Relief, an NGO and Hassan al-Dughaim, the spokesperson for the preparatory committee of national dialogue, attend a press conference in Damascus, Syria February 13, 2025. REUTERS/Firas Makdesi 

Syrian groups must disarm to take part in national dialogue, official says

“Groups that refuse to lay down their arms and submit to the defence ministry's authority will play no part in a national dialogue on Syria's future, a committee set up to prepare for a national conference said on Thursday.
The statement raises the prospect of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which hold much of northern and eastern Syria, being excluded from the national conference unless they disarm in line with the demands of the new Damascus government.”

Contact Us

Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
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(202) 543-1222  info@cmep.org