 |  | December 5th News Bulletin Here’s what’s upcoming and what you may have missed at CMEP and in the news. | | | | 1. Gaza death toll rises to 70,000 as repeated outbreaks of violence test ceasefire NBC "Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed more than 70,000 people in over two years of war, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, as the death toll continues to climb despite the ongoing ceasefire. Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed at least 70,100 people since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which equates to more than 3% of the 2.3 million people living in the enclave. A further 170,983 people have been wounded." | | | | | | 2. Gaza: Israeli strike kills five, including two children, says civil defence agency The Guardain "An Israeli strike on Palestinian territory has killed five people including two children, Gaza’s civil defence agency told AFP on Wednesday. “Five citizens, including two children, killed and others injured, some seriously, as a result of an Israeli missile strike,” in al-Mawasi, west of Khan Younis, civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal told AFP." | | | | | | 3. Rafah crossing to open soon to let Gazans cross into Egypt, Israel says Reuters "Gaza's main gateway will open in the next few days, Israel said on Wednesday, allowing thousands of Palestinians who are in need of medical care to leave the war-ravaged enclave through Egypt. COGAT, the Israeli military arm that oversees humanitarian matters, said the opening of the Rafah crossing will be coordinated with Egypt, under the supervision of the European Union mission, similar to a mechanism employed during a previous Gaza ceasefire agreed in January 2025." | | | | | | 4. A single hostage remains in Gaza after identification of Thai worker’s remains Ap News "Remains that militants in Gaza handed to Israel were those of Thai agricultural worker Sudthisak Rinthalak, Israeli and Thai officials said Thursday. The confirmation brought the first phase of Gaza’s tenuous 8-week-old ceasefire a step closer to completion, with one more hostage’s remains still to be returned." | | | | | | 5. UNSC delegation visits Syria on first trip a year after al-Assad’s fall Al Jazeera "A United Nations Security Council (UNSC) delegation has arrived in Syria for its first-ever trip to the country, reported state media, just days before the war-ravaged nation marks the first anniversary of the ousting of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad. The UNSC delegation arrived via the Jdeidet Yabous border crossing between Lebanon and Syria and “is scheduled to meet a number of Syrian officials” and members of civil society, state news agency SANA reported on Thursday." | | | | | | 6. Israel hits multiple towns in southern Lebanon as attacks intensify Al Jazeera "Israel’s military has launched air strikes on at least three towns in southern Lebanon, Mahrouna, Jbaa, and al-Majadel, despite the ceasefire in place since last November. According to Lebanon’s National News Agency, the attack on Jbaa on Thursday destroyed a building in a densely populated residential area and caused extensive damage to nearby structures." | | | | | | | | Still Active: ACTION ALERT "Block the Bombs Act" On May 21st, 2025, House Resolution 3565 was introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives, also known as the "Block the Bombs Act." The resolution calls for a limit on the sale of bombs, ammunition (including white phosphorus), and ammunition manufacturing capability. The act comes as Israel has strengthened its assault on Gaza and the West Bank, with an estimated death toll since October 7th, 2023 standing at 54,000 Palestinian men, women, and children. Congress needs to pressure the Trump Administration to protect Palestinian civilians through the passage of HRes. 3565. Your voice can push your representative to support this vital resolution and limit offensive weapon capabilities of Israel, protecting Gazan civilians from relentless bombs. Contact your representative and urge them to support the initiative. | | | | | | | | Peacebuilding Lessons from the Middle East February 16, 23, March 2, 9, 2026 | Noon–2 PM
Instructor: The Rev’d Mae Elise Cannon, PhD, Executive Director of Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
Offered at Berkeley Divinity School at Yale In a time of deep global division and conflict, this course invites participants to learn from the lived witness of Christians in the Middle East who embody faith, resilience, and hope amid adversity. Taught by the Rev’d Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, Executive Director of Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP), the course focuses on Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, exploring how the church in the Holy Land seeks justice, reconciliation, and spiritual renewal in the face of ongoing struggle. Through an interdisciplinary blend of theology, history, and practical ministry, participants will engage in spiritual formation, examine models of conflict transformation, and gain tools for peacebuilding and advocacy. Together, we will explore what it means to “love one’s enemy” and move from apathy to action in the pursuit of justice and peace in the Middle East and in our own communities. | | | | | | Call to Prayer for Shadi Khoury On Sept, 8th 2025, after two years and eleven months of procrastination in the corridors of the occupation's courts, after an arrest accompanied by torture, Shadi's steadfastness during interrogation, a full year of house arrest, and thirty-seven consecutive court sessions, the judge issued his decision convicting Shadi. Please join us on Wednesdays 12:30pm EST as we pray for Shadi and all other affected by unjust violence. | | | | | | Call to Prayer Layan Nasir The cautious relief brought by news of a ceasefire deal for Gaza was shattered today with the devastating report that Palestinian activist Layan Nasir has been taken directly to prison following a court appearance. Layan and her family now face the pain of an additional eight-month sentence within Israel’s harsh prison system. The timing of this decision underscores the ongoing suffering and injustice faced by Palestinians, an unrelenting reality that persists even as hopes rise for peace in Gaza. | | | | | | From CMEP's Own: Dignity, safety, and hope across religious divides In Dignity, Safety, and Hope Across Religious Divides, Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon and Dr. Allison Wattenbarger highlight a remarkable multi-faith effort for peace in the Holy Land. Writing in The Christian Citizen, they explore a rare and courageous global letter organized by Churches for Middle East peace and signed by more than 140 Jewish, Christian, and Muslim leaders, calling for an end to violence in Gaza and the West Bank, protection of human rights, and a renewed commitment to humanitarian aid. Moving beyond dialogue, the piece showcases how religious leaders are reclaiming their moral authority to advocate for dignity, safety, and hope for all who call the Holy Land home. | | | | | | CMEP 2025 Annual Report In a year defined by unimaginable suffering in Gaza and across the Holy Land, Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) seeks to embody a steady, faithful response: to hold hope when others lose it, to tell the truth when others stay silent, and to build unity where division has taken root. | | | | | | Be Part of CMEP’s Let Children Live Advent Prayer Chain and 2025 Advent Devotional This Advent, CMEP invites you to journey with us through the Let Children Live campaign with our 2025 Advent Devotional Booklet and Prayer Chain. In a season marked by hope and longing, we lift up the names of Palestinian children living under occupation and commit to praying that they may live and flourish.
As we prepare for Christmas, we remember that the peace of Christ is revealed in the lives of children, their resilience, their joy, and their vulnerability. Each day of Advent, pray for your assigned child by name, reflect on Scripture, and take simple steps toward peace.
Walk with us this season as together we pray to Let Children Live. | | | | | | | | Support CMEP’s Work for Peace
If you value the programs and advocacy efforts highlighted in the bulletin, we invite you to partner with us. Your generosity makes it possible for CMEP to continue hosting events, leading education initiatives, and amplifying voices for justice and peace in the Middle East. If you would like to support CMEP in expanding this important work, please consider making a donation today. Thank you for standing with us. | | | | | | | | | | | | Receive the Name of a Palestinian Child Alive Today and Lift them up
in Prayer and Advocacy "Let Children Live" More than two million children in Gaza and the West Bank live under brutal oppression, their lives too often reduced to statistics. Yet each child is beloved by God. The Let Children Live campaign invites you to receive the name of a Palestinian child alive today and lift them up in prayer and advocacy. Together, we can remind the world of their dignity, hope, and right to a future. Join Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) and our global partners in this urgent call to stand with children who deserve to live and thrive. | | | | | | | | | | November 20, 2025 CMEP Let Children Live Vigil On November 20, 2025, Churches for Middle East Peace held an online World Children’s Day vigil through its “Let Children Live” campaign, gathering Christians to pray for Palestinian children in Gaza and the West Bank. Participants received the name and age of a living child, wrote that name and a blessing on a card, and lifted those names together in a communal moment of prayer. The vigil featured live reflections from leaders such as Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, Rania Maayeh of Ramallah Friends School, Humberto Tinsman, Bill Forbes of World Vision, and Shane Claiborne, alongside messages from Archbishop Elpidophoros, Rev. Eddie Aleman, and children from Ramallah Friends School. Through Scripture-shaped prayers, attendees interceded for children’s safety, dignity, education, and protection from violence. The vigil concluded with an invitation for each person to take one concrete act of advocacy for the child whose name they carried. | | | | | | 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 | | | | | | | |
