 |  | September 6th News Bulletin Here’s what’s upcoming and what you may have missed at CMEP and in the news. | | | | Public Statement: Churches for Middle East Peace Mourns Death of Hostages and Massive Civilian Deaths in Gaza Washington, D.C. September 6, 2024: Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) is deeply grieved by the death of six hostages killed late last week in Gaza. One of the hostages was an American citizen, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, whose parents, Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jonathan Polin, spoke at the Democratic National Convention on August 21. | | | | | | | | American Christians and the Middle East w/ Mae Cannon Disarming Leviathan - Missionaries to Christian Nationalists This week, we are joined by Rev. Dr. Mae Cannon, Executive Director of CMEP, for a discussion of how Christians can think deeply about peacemaking in the Middle East. Mae shares from her years of experience, commitment to practicing the way of Jesus and deep love for the people. | | | | | |  | American peace activist Aysenur Eygi, 26, was shot dead by IDF forces in the West Bank. | | | Israeli soldiers shoot and kill an American woman during a West Bank protest, witness says AP News "Israeli soldiers killed an American woman participating in an anti-settlement protest in the West Bank on Friday, another protester who witnessed the shooting told The Associated Press. Two doctors said she was shot in the head." | | | | | |  | This combination of six undated photos shows hostages, from top left, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Ori Danino, Eden Yerushalmi, from bottom left, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov, and Carmel Gat, who were held hostage by Hamas militants in Gaza. THE HOSTAGES FAMILIES FORUM VIA AP | | | Massive protests erupt in Israel to demand cease-fire after 6 hostages found dead in Gaza CBS News “Thousands of angry and grieving Israelis surged into the streets Sunday night after six Hamas-held hostages were found dead in Gaza. They chanted "Now! Now!" as they demanded Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reach a cease-fire with Hamas to bring the remaining captives home. The mass demonstration erupted after the Israeli military announced they had recovered the bodies in a tunnel under the Gaza city of Rafah on Saturday.” | | | | | |  | 'I am asking for your forgiveness': Netanyahu speaks directly to hostage families | | | Netanyahu derailed a potential Gaza hostage deal in July, Israeli newspaper reports CNN “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in July effectively spiked a draft hostage and ceasefire deal by introducing a raft of new, 11th-hour demands, according to a report by the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth citing a document it obtained. The report lends credence to charges often leveled at the prime minister – most notably by hostage families – of purposefully prolonging the war and torpedoing deals for his political benefit. Far-right members of Netanyahu’s coalition have pledged to bring down the government should he end the war.” | | | | | | | | | | “Understanding Gaza: Political Context and Theological Challenges” In collaboration with the McClendon Scholar-in-Residence Program at The New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, Churches for Middle East Peace invites you to join us on Tuesday evening, September 10 to hear Rev. Mitri Raheb speak on “Understanding Gaza: Political Context and Theological Challenges.” Rev. Dr. Raheb will be joined by fellow Palestinian voices Fr. Fadi Diab and Dr. Lamma Mansour, and CMEP’s Kyle Cristofalo. The event will be held at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC. | | | | | | Save the Date: Better Citizens, Better World- Oct. 16-19 Churches for Middle East Peace, in partnership with Evangelicals4Justice (E4J), Christians for Social Action (CSA), the Voices Project, and the Network of Evangelicals for the Middle East (NEME), invites you to save the date for conference exploring how to take small and courageous steps together with fellow Jesus-followers. The Better Citizens, Better World conference, hosted virtually October 16-19, 2024, invites participants to explore meaningful ways of engaging as thoughtful citizens who care deeply and prayerfully about our nation. Discover your important role as a citizen AND as a follower of Jesus. More information will be available soon. | | | | CMEP in Seattle Regional Tour:
Churches for Middle East Peace is excited to share a series of regional events in the Seattle, WA area between September 13-22, 2024 featuring CMEP executive director, Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, and programs and outreach manager, Destiny Magnett. | | | | | Save the Date: October 6th Solidarity Sunday
We invite you to save the date for another Solidarity Sunday call to worship on October 6th, 2024 as we prepare for the anniversary of the October 7th attacks. More information will be available soon. | | | | | | CMEP Daily Regional Updates Everyday CMEP Executive Director Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon releases 10 minute updates on Middle East news of the past 24 hours. This is a great way to stay informed on the ongoing situations. If you would like to watch these daily updates you can do so below. | | | | | Uniting Women for Change a "And Still We Rise" Podcast This six-episode podcast series is produced by Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP). Co-hosts Destiny Magnett and Tamar Haddad engage American and Palestinian women from diverse age groups and backgrounds in candid conversations, with special attention to current events unfolding since October 7th. | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  | A Palestinian girl is vaccinated against polio, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, September 5, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem | | | Palestinian children in south Gaza receive polio vaccinations amid continued war Reuters “Crowds of Palestinians gathered at medical centers in the south of the embattled Gaza Strip on Thursday for their children to be vaccinated against polio in the second stage of a campaign that has so far seen 187,000 youngsters inoculated. The U.N. Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said the campaign, taking place after Hamas and Israel agreed on limited pauses in their fighting, was so far successful but complex.” | | | | | |  | Lujain Musleh was buried in Kafr Dan on Wednesday, a day after she was shot dead during an Israeli raid. | | | Girl 'killed inside home' as Israeli West Bank operation continues BBC “A funeral has been held for a 16-year-old Palestinian girl reportedly killed by Israeli forces in the north of the occupied West Bank on the seventh day of a wide-scale Israeli operation.
Lujain Musleh’s father said she was shot in the head as she looked out of a window of her home in Kafr Dan, just outside Jenin, after soldiers surrounded a neighboring house on Tuesday.”
| | | | | |  | n Israeli soldier gestures on a top of a tank as Israeli military vehicles maneuver, near the Israel-Gaza border, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/files | | | UK suspends 30 of its 350 arms export licenses to Israel Reuters “Britain will immediately suspend 30 of its 350 arms export licenses with Israel because there was a risk such equipment might be used to commit serious violations of international humanitarian law, foreign minister David Lammy said on Monday.” | | | | | |  | A man walks on a damaged road following an Israeli Raid in Jenin, West Bank, on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 (AP Photo/ Majdi Mohammed) | | | What to know about Israel’s major weeklong raid in the West Bank city of Jenin AP News "For more than a week, hundreds of Israeli forces have carried out the deadliest operation in the occupied West Bank since the war in Gaza began. Their focus has been the Jenin refugee camp — a bastion of Palestinian militancy that has grown more fervent since the Hamas attack on Israel that launched the war." | | | | | | | |  | Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi gestures during a joint press conference with French Presiden Emanual Macron in Cairo, Egypt, on Oct 25, 2023 (AP Photo/ Christophe Ena, Pool, File) | | | Egypt’s president makes his first visit to Turkey as relations thaw AP News “The presidents of Turkey and Egypt on Wednesday found common ground on the war in Gaza as they continued to mend long-strained relations, emphasizing the need for a permanent cease-fire and guaranteed delivery of humanitarian aid. Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi spoke during the Egyptian leader’s first official visit to Ankara after years of tensions between the regional powers.” | | | | | | | | | | | | Beyond the Headlines August 26th On August 26th Churches for Middle East Peace held a special webinar focusing on women working at the intersections of journalism and media in Palestine, and the unique role women play in shaping stories coming out of the Middle East. This webinar payed specific attention to the current crisis in Gaza. You can watch the recording here. | | | | | | | | Contact Us Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
110 Maryland Ave NE, Suite 505
Washington, District of Columbia 20002
(202) 543-1222 info@cmep.org | | | | | | | |
