Churches for Middle East Peace
annexation protest

Annexation? Most U.S. Evangelicals Have Other Things on Their Mind Right Now
A look at protests and the evangelical response, ongoing discussions of annexation, and more news in this week’s bulletin.

Image: A protester holding a sign saying "Annex This" at an anti-annexation demonstration in Tel Aviv, June 6, 2020. (Tomer Appelbaum)

 
evangelicals and annexation

Annexation? Most U.S. evangelicals have other things on their mind right now
Haaretz

“The streets of the capital saw many protests over the past week, and most of them were larger and noisier than the one that took place between Capitol Hill and the White House on Sunday afternoon (June 7). Yet despite the fact that this particular demonstration attracted only about 1,000 people, in terms of political significance it could turn out to be just as important. What stood out about this particular demonstration was that its organizers and most participants were evangelical Christians – a group that is usually associated with the right wing in U.S. politics. These evangelicals, however, were protesting against police violence and carrying ‘Black Lives Matter’ placards.” 

Image: A protester holding a sign saying "Annex This" at an anti-annexation demonstration in Tel Aviv, June 6, 2020. (Tomer Appelbaum)

 
jews of color

‘As a Jew of Color, I Need More People in My Community to Speak Up’
Haaretz

“Sitting on the stoop of his apartment building in Crown Heights early last week, Yehudah Webster took out his cellphone and began recording himself. Being a community organizer for the group Jews for Racial & Economic Justice, he had been conducting virtual meetings from his apartment all day and stepped out for some much-needed air. ‘I feel like I’m drowning. I feel like I wanna run away from my own existence,’ he said from behind his face mask. 'I’ve had enough; black people have had enough.’”

Image: A placard stating "Silence Kills" during a "Black Lives Matter" demonstration, June 7, 2020. (Frank Augstein/AP)

 
settlement law nixed

High Court nixes law aimed at legalizing settler homes built on Palestinian land
Times of Israel

“The High Court of Justice on Tuesday (June 9) struck down on constitutional grounds divisive legislation passed by the Knesset in 2017 that would have allowed the state to expropriate private Palestinian land where thousands of illegal settler homes have been built. In an 8-1 decision, the top legal body ruled that the Regulation Law ‘was unconstitutional and ordered it nullified,’ saying it ‘violates the property rights and equality of Palestinians, and gives clear priority to the interests of Israeli settlers over Palestinian residents [of the West Bank],’ a statement from the court said.” 

Image: Mariam Hammad, of nearby Silwad, points to a piece of land in the West Bank she says belongs to her but was taken by Israelis to build the outpost of Amona, November 2016. (Raphael Ahren/Times of Israel)

 
What's Happening at CMEP
summit

10 Days until Equal in God’s Eyes!

Our annual advocacy summit will be digital this year! Join us June 22nd for an online summit. We are excited to have incredible speakers joining us and hope you will, too!

press release

Public Statement: 27 Church Leaders Write to Congress Opposing Annexation:

The United States has a moral responsibility to promote human rights, justice and peace. We are now looking to our Congressional leaders to make clear that annexation undermines the rule of law and is morally unacceptable.

events

19 Days to Stop Injustice: Join #ChurchesAgainst
Annexation:

CMEP is excited to announce the launch of our Churches Against Annexation campaign. With all signs pointing towards formal annexation of Area C in the West Bank beginning July 1, speak out against this injustice! We will offer webinars, action alerts, and other ways for you to engage.

 

Donate

Please help us keep our $20,000 match campaign momentum going. Please donate and share in your networks to support CMEP's work!

Thanks for your support! Churches for Middle East Peace is following guidelines related to the Covid19 Pandemic to allow our employees to work from home and to observe social distancing measures. As a result, we are temporarily updating our mailing address to receive donations. We appreciate your ongoing support. If you are planning to donate to CMEP via check, we encourage you to take advantage of online credit-card or E-check options at www.cmep.org since our staff will be working from home for the foreseeable future, making it hard to process checks.

Please write your checks out to Churches for Middle East Peace and mail your checks to: 

Churches for Middle East Peace
PO Box 328
Cedarville, AR 72932

 
Safadi

Jordanian FM says annexation will lead to ‘confrontation and anarchy’
Times of Israel

“Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Thursday (June 4) warned against Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank, saying the move would lead to ‘confrontation, anarchy and hopelessness.’ Safadi made the statements to an international summit discussing the Islamic State, Channel 13 reported. ‘As part of the war on terror, we must act quickly to prevent Israel from annexing one-third of occupied Palestine and the consequences of this decision,’ Safadi said. ‘Instead, negotiations must be resumed in order to achieve piece on the basis of a two-state solution.’”

Image: Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi delivers his speech during a United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, UNRWA, conference, in Rome, March 15, 2018. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

 
Maale Michmash

The Palestinian plan to stop annexation: remind Israel what occupation means
NY Times

“Israel's Energy Minister on Thursday (June 4) appeared to temper the government's enthusiasm for the Trump administration's Middle East peace proposal, saying that the Jerusalem has never promised to embrace every aspect of Washington's plan. ‘We didn’t announce that we’re adopting the Trump plan, but rather parts of it, including the part that lets us extend Israeli law to settlements and the Jordan Valley,’ Yuval Steinitz (Likud) told Army Radio. Steinitz, one (of) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's closest allies, made the comments amid growing complaints from right-wing activists, especially settler leaders, over the prospect of establishing a Palestinian state."

Image: Part of the proposed annexation, Maale Michmash. (Oded Balilty/Associated Press)

 
hotel corona

'Everybody's getting along here': how 'Hotel Corona' united Israelis and Palestinians
NPR

“Baruch Shpitzer, the reception manager at the Dan Jerusalem Hotel, prides himself on making tourists feel at home in his sprawling 9-story hotel and spa, built into a cliffside and featuring panoramic Old City views. In March, though, his hospitality skills were put to the test. His reception desk was encased in plexiglass. His new arrivals were sometimes delivered by ambulance. None of them was staying at his hotel by choice. ‘We speak to them to get them out from the shock that they're in when they're coming into the hotel,’ Shpitzer says. The guests, as he called them, came from many walks of life — Israeli Jews, Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel, Palestinian residents of Jerusalem, religious, secular — but all had one thing in common: They were among thousands of COVID-19 patients the Israeli military quarantined in hotels throughout the country.”

Image: Aysha Abu Shhab (right) and Noam Shuster-Eliassi (second from right) with other COVID-19 patients quarantined by the Israeli military at the Dan Jerusalem Hotel, which became known as "Hotel Corona." (Noam Shuster-Eliassi)

 

CMEP's Bulletin is a weekly round-up of news from the Middle East and represents an array of perspectives on the issues we cover. CMEP does not necessarily agree with all the views expressed in the articles, and they do not speak on CMEP's behalf.

Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
110 Maryland Ave NE, Suite 311 | Washington, District of Columbia  20002
(202) 543-1222 | info@cmep.org

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