May 3rd News Bulletin

Here’s what’s upcoming and what you may have missed at CMEP and in the news.

Important news from CMEP and the US:

Image: Palestinians look at the destruction after an Israeli airstrike in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, April 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Catholics are invited to sign this letter.
Click here to sign.

Catholic leaders, urging cease-fire, call on Biden to halt weapons shipments to Israel

Religious News Service

"Organized in part by the Catholic Advisory Council of Churches for Middle East Peace, the letter calls for the release of the roughly 200 hostages still held by Hamas in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that left 1,200 dead, noting that children and the elderly are among those being held. It goes on to criticize the subsequent assault on the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces that has killed as many as 34,000 people and left hundreds of thousands facing famine, and urged the 'release of all Palestinian political prisoners held unjustly by Israel.'"

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Image: Carol Daniel Kasbari, Non-Resident Scholar, MEI

No evidence found: Independent review dismisses allegations against UNRWA

Middle East Institute

“An independent review led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna found no evidence to support Israel’s allegations that employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) were linked to Hamas or other terrorist activities. The review, which examined UNRWA’s operations and policies following Israel’s claims, concludes that the allegations were unsupported by concrete evidence provided by Israeli authorities."

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Image: Ezz Lulu, a 22-year-old medical student, surrounded by rubble in northern Gaza last week. (NBC News)

'You are our hope': Palestinian students find strength in U.S. campus protests

NBC News

“Protests over Israel's assault on Gaza have rocked college campuses in the U.S. and drawn condemnation from Israeli leaders, but students in the Palestinian enclave say they are watching the demonstrations closely — and gaining renewed strength from their peers in America. ‘I feel proud that there is a group of students who feel what we feel now — and are helping and supporting us,’ said Reem Musa Suleiman Abu Shinar, who studied law before Oct. 7.”

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Join Us:

Join a group of Churches for Middle East Peace's Regional Coordinators as they venture to Israel/Palestine in November 2024. This trip will highlight the spiritual significance of the Holy Land, the role local Christians play in the landscape of the region, meetings with religious and non-profit leaders in the region, and in-depth analysis and engagement with the current realities on the ground. This trip also includes attending CMEP's And Still We Rise Summit in Jericho. Join us this November 9-18th, 2024.

Just 1 week left to join this group!

For more information or questions about this trip, please email ana@cmep.org.

The Israeli-Palestinian Joint Memorial Day Ceremony is the largest Israeli-Palestinian peace event in history. Featuring presentations by Israeli and Palestinian artists and speakers, this year’s event will be broadcast on May 12, 2024. The Ceremony is organized by Combatants for Peace and the Parents Circle–Families Forum, and Churches for Middle East Peace is proud to be a sponsor. Especially now, when the world seems so dark, the ceremony offers us hope to remember the sanctity of all life and a way to heal together. Register today and help build a better future based on peace, freedom, and dignity for all.

More News from CMEP
(in-person events, past webinar, and letter sign-on)

Can we talk about Gaza? Toward a compassionate Christian response to the crisis in Israel-Palestine: What does our Christian faith require us to see, say, and do in response to what is before us in Gaza? Join Churches for Middle East Peace, Poema, and a coalition of campus ministries on Thursday, May 9, 2024 from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm in Chicago, IL as we listen, learn, lament and give compassionate consideration to how Christians might be salt and light amidst such tragic and trying times. This will be a moderated panel conversation examining Christian ethics, historical and theological context, and a vision of compassionate and conscientious response to the current crises.

In case you missed it: Humanitarian and Health Realities in Gaza & the West Bank: A Report from Catholic Development Agencies- For any who missed this webinar on Tuesday, it is now recorded and available for you to watch or share with your community. Listen to representatives of Catholic Relief Services and Caritas Baby Hospital who are dealing with the ongoing tragedies in the Holy Land firsthand.

Watch Now

May 2, 2024: Sign-On Letter from U.S. Catholics on Israel-Palestine. In May 2024, when this letter is being released, we continue to plead for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and adherence to international law by all parties. 71% of U.S. Catholics support a Gaza ceasefire, echoing the position of Pope Francis, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Society of Jesus, and other U.S. Catholic organizations and leaders. As of this letter’s publication, over 34,000 Palestinians in Gaza–– the majority civilians––have been killed by Israel’s military assault marked by indiscriminate bombing.

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Image: Heather Hall, a Christian from Cypress, talks with Shanaz Ghani. (Callaghan O'Hare- USA Today)

From the sidelines, some Christians in US strive to be peacemakers as Israel-Hamas war continues

USA Today

“The Rev. Mae Elise Cannon, executive director of Churches for Middle East Peace in Washington, D.C., said many church leaders have been reluctant to talk about the war, dreading the divisions such discussion might sow among their congregations. ‘They are immobilized by fear,’ she said.”

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Image: Home Moravian Church, Winston Salem, NC with leaders from the Moravian Church.

Pilgrimage to Peace Tour Updates:

CMEP’s Executive Director and the Pilgrimage to Peace (P2P) tour finished up two weeks of visits to churches and universities in New York State and New Jersey with Tamar Haddad (CMEP) and in Illinois and North Carolina with Jonathan Kuttab (FOSNA) and Destiny Magnett (CMEP). It was a profound and intense time of discussion, prayer, study, and calls for a comprehensive ceasefire and for the church to actively engage in saying “enough killing” and an end to the bombing of Gaza. CMEP remains committed to our asks for a comprehensive ceasefire, immediate and adequate humanitarian assistance to Gaza, the return of the hostages, a release of Palestinian prisoners being held unjustly, the reinstatement of UNRWA funding, the withholding of military assistance until it can be assured it is being used according to US and international law, and that core causes of the conflict be addressed.

If you are interested in hosting CMEP staff at your church or community, contact us at info@cmep.org

Welcome Ben Norquist as CMEP’s new Director of Academics and Grants

Ben is a researcher and public organizer who previously served as a CMEP Ambassador Warren Clark Fellow. Ben holds his Ph.D. in Higher Education from Azusa Pacific University (Los Angeles) and his M.A. in Liberal Arts from St. John's College (Annapolis). Ben's dissertation is a qualitative regional case study exploring adaptive Palestinian approaches to pedagogy. Ben's writing has appeared in Religion News Service, The Christian Century, Baptist News Global, and the Christian Citizen among others.

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