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MENNONITE PALESTINE ISRAEL NETWORK

MennoPIN Update – October 15, 2023 In This Issue Jonathan Kuttab’s Take Take Action – Say to Joe Biden What You Think Kairos Palestine Statement on the War on Gaza A Prayer from Sabeel Stay Informed on Palestine Palestinians hurriedly leaving Gaza City — mounting donkeys, riding vehicles and walking — fleeing to the south as the Israeli military tells them to leave their homes or face death. Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty Images Jonathan Kuttab’s Take Jonathan Kuttab, MennoPIN Steering Committee member and Executive Director of Friends of Sabeel North America, has been constantly assessing the horrifying events in Gaza. Here is his latest report. “Atrocities committed against one’s enemies, up to and including genocide, always begin with dehumanization. “I have always been aware of this, and I know there is a tendency among Palestinians to dehumanize Israelis, the settlers, and Zionists, just as there is a tendency among Israelis and their supporters to dehumanize Palestinians, the PLO, and Hamas, especially with the term “terrorist.” During the Rwanda genocide, the Hutus referred to Tutsis as “cockroaches” before they began slaughtering them. “It is therefore with great alarm that I listened to the frenzy of horrifying statements coming from Israeli commanders as they escalated their attacks on Gaza. In addition to the term “terrorist,” often irresponsibly used here in the US as well, the term being used now is “human animals.” This designation is not limited to Hamas and its fighters, but covers all the people of Gaza, as the Israeli President Hertzog said on Friday:  “It is not true civilians were not involved . . . They are collectively responsible for the attacks.”  “The Israeli Minister of Defense, Yoram Gallant, used this disgusting term, and the Israeli Army’s Commander in Chief, Herzl Halevy, preparing for the ground assault also declared, “They are human animals, and we will treat them accordingly.” In addition to the massive bombardment, he said that “there will be no water, no electricity, no food, and no medicines.” This openly illegal statement (under the laws of war) went largely unchallenged in the West, precisely because many have bought into Israel’s demonization and dehumanization of Palestinians. Support and sympathy for the civilian casualties of Hamas’ attack, however, was used as a “green light” and legitimization of Israel’s subsequent response.” Continue reading here.   Take Action – Say to Joe Biden What You Think Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) has been supplying aid and relief in Palestine since the 1950s. In addition, MCC has encouraged advocacy and action in the United States Legislative and Executive branches. They have created a direct way for you to tell President Biden, Vice-President Harris and your congressional representative how you want them to respond. Consider this quick way of express your thoughts and actions you think they should take here. A member of the MennoPIN Steering Committee wrote President Biden and her letter is posted on our MennoPIN website here. Kairos Palestine Statement on the War on Gaza Kairos Palestine is a nonviolent Palestinian Christian movement which advocates for the ending of the Israeli occupation and achieving a just solution to the conflict. They recently released their statement on what is happening now: “The war on Gaza again, but this time it started from Gaza. I has caused great suffering and destruction in Israel. Many see it as an unjust war against Israel. But the question that every human being, and every seeker of peace and justice, must ask is: Why did this war start? “We all say, No, to the War. We all say, Yes, to peace, and to working for a just and final solution to an existing conflict and to the injustice that has been imposed on the Palestinian people for more than 70 years. Israel does not see the Palestinian people as having any right to exist, and the international community is too weak to implement its decisions to find a just and final solution. “We all mourn and console all the victims on both sides of the conflict. A human being is a human being, both Israeli and Palestinian, and every human being is clear in the eyes of God, and the eyes of his family, relatives, and loved ones. “No to war, yes to a just and final peace. “What is the reason for this sudden war that started from Gaza”? Please read the entire statement here. A Prayer from Sabeel On October 7th, a historic and devastating series of events unfolded in Palestinian-Israeli history. Hamas initiated an operation known as “Al-Aqsa Flood,” launching thousands of rockets from Gaza into Israel and breaking through the electronic boarder barrier, causing the loss of hundreds of Israeli lives, and the taking of several Israelis as captives including women and children, into Gaza. In response, Israel declared “Operation Swords of Iron,” involving a brutal and continuous aerial attack on Gaza that claimed hundreds of lives. and various acts of aggression in the West Bank, resulting in the deaths of several Palestinians. The true extent of the recent events’ damage remains unknown, marking the beginning of a period of immense suffering.Heavenly Father, as this period of violence and bloodshed unfolds, we pray for Your justice and mercy. We pray for all who are suffering. We lift up all innocent people in particular the people of Gaza who are vulnerable and helpless to the Israeli airstrikes. May we remember that the recent events are connected to the long history of the Nakba and Israeli systematic oppression against the Palestinian people. Lord, only a just and lasting solution will end the cycle of violence. We call on the international community to work towards this end.Lord in Your mercy…hear our prayer Stay Informed on Palestine MennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends:   Organizations Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA) Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel) Mennonite Central Committee Palestine (MCC) IsraelChristian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR) Kairos PalestineKairos USAAmericans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU) Christian Zionism Palestinian Christian Alliance for Peace Palestine Portal  Web Publications Mondeweiss The Electronic Intifada +972 Magazine B’Tselem Palestine InSight

As people committed to nonviolence, MennoPIN strongly condemns the current violence carried out both by Hamas and by the Israeli military.  MennoPIN urges an immediate ceasefire between Hamas and Israel and calls on the US and the wider international community to support a diplomatic solution to the situation at hand.
 
MennoPIN likewise recognizes that the Hamas attack was not unprovoked. For decades the people of Palestine have been oppressed by the violence and occupation of apartheid Israel against them with home demolitions, child detentions, separation walls, settler colonialism and violence, seizures of land and controls over water and food supplies. And Gaza has been an open air prison where Israel controls how much water, electricity and food Gazans can have. The extreme measures taken by the recent Netanyahu ultra-right government have made life increasingly hostile for Palestinians. The praxis of U.S. one-sided and national interest driven diplomacy and unwillingness to effectively address the apartheid reality have contributed deeply to these extreme measures. Additionally, the Biden administration’s attempts to normalize diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel have become the final straw for the militant Palestinian resistance. Ultimately, hopelessness breeds violence.
 
We pray for leadership that has the courage to address the problems, injustices and racism that perpetuates this violence. We especially pray for wisdom and restraint between Hamas and the Israeli government.

MENNONITE PALESTINE ISRAEL NETWORK

MennoPIN Update – October 10, 2023 In This Issue War in the Holy Land – MennoPIN Statement Analysis – Jonathan Kuttab 5 Things You Need to Know A Prayer from Sabeel Stay Informed on Palestine War in the Holy Land – A MennoPIN Statement SMOKE AND FLAMES BILLOW AFTER ISRAELI FORCES STRUCK A HIGH-RISE TOWER IN GAZA CITY, OCTOBER 7, 2023. (PHOTO: APA IMAGES) As people committed to nonviolence, MennoPIN strongly condemns the current violence carried out both by Hamas and by the Israeli military.  MennoPIN urges an immediate ceasefire between Hamas and Israel and calls on the US and the wider international community to support a diplomatic solution to the situation at hand.   MennoPIN likewise recognizes that the Hamas attack was not unprovoked. For decades the people of Palestine have been oppressed by the violence and occupation of apartheid Israel against them with home demolitions, child detentions, separation walls, settler colonialism and violence, seizures of land and controls over water and food supplies. And Gaza has been an open air prison where Israel controls how much water, electricity and food Gazans can have. The extreme measures taken by the recent Netanyahu ultra-right government have made life increasingly hostile for Palestinians. The praxis of U.S. one-sided and national interest driven diplomacy and unwillingness to effectively address the apartheid reality have contributed deeply to these extreme measures. Additionally, the Biden administration’s attempts to normalize diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel have become the final straw for the militant Palestinian resistance. Ultimately, hopelessness breeds violence.   We pray for leadership that has the courage to address the problems, injustices and racism that perpetuates this violence. We especially pray for wisdom and restraint between Hamas and the Israeli government. Analysis – Jonathan Kuttab (Jonathan Kuttab is on the MennoPIN Steering Committee and Executive Director of Friends of Sabeel North American, for which he wrote this analysis) Firefighters try to put out burning cars at the scene where a rocket fired from Gaza landed in a residential area in Rishon LeZion, October 7, 2023. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90) The fighting in Gaza that has shocked the world requires a clear and principled response. For FOSNA, as an organization that promotes the message of Palestinian Liberation Theology and the Christian perspective on which it is based, a number of statements need to be made: The first thing we have to say, which is intrinsic to our theology, is that violence and war are never the answer. We need to realize, Palestinians and Israelis alike, that any solution must be based on justice and not the destruction of the other party. At the very least, there must exist a clear distinction between civilian and military targets, between fighters and noncombatants. This is a rule that applies to each side; whatever the justifications, those who choose war and violence in the pursuit of their goals must use every possible means to avoid killing noncombatants or targeting civilian infrastructure. We fear we will see thousands of civilian casualties in the coming few days, primarily among Palestinians who have no access to bomb shelters and no organized state structures to defend them. We are distressed that instead of calling for a quick end to the fighting, many are praising it while doubling down on their ability to inflict maximum damage upon their enemies. Continue reading here. 5 Things You Need to Know (From the American Friends Service Committee) A Palestinian man in Gaza surveys the ruins of a bookstore destroyed by the Israeli bombardment in Gaza in May 2021.  Sameh Rahmi On Oct. 7, Palestinians from Gaza carried out attacks in Israel that killed at least 600 Israelis, injured over 2,000, and took dozens of hostages. Israeli attacks on Gaza on Oct. 7 and 8 killed approximately 500 Palestinians and injured at least 2,300 more. In the days since, violence has only escalated and those numbers continue to grow… 1. Violence did not begin with the attacks from Gaza.Even before Oct. 7, this year (2023) was one of the most violent years in Palestine in more than a decade. At least 247 Palestinians—including 47 children—had been killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers before the end of September. During the same period, Israeli settlers launched over 800 attacks on Palestinians and Palestinian-owned property. Additionally, over 1,100 Palestinians had been forcibly displaced from their homes. These actions occurred in a context where Israeli land confiscation, mass arrest campaigns, military attacks on Palestinian cities, and threats to Palestinian control over Al-Aqsa mosque—an important religious site in Jerusalem—have all increased.  Since coming to power, the far-right Netanyahu government in Israel has escalated violence against Palestinian communities while rejecting any possibility of Palestinian independence or equality. Settler leaders now hold sway in Israel and have taken concrete steps toward annexing the West Bank while pushing forward efforts to eliminate Palestinians from the majority of the West Bank.  For Palestinians, violence is an extreme, daily reality. Continue reading here. A Prayer from Sabeel On October 7th, a historic and devastating series of events unfolded in Palestinian-Israeli history. Hamas initiated an operation known as “Al-Aqsa Flood,” launching thousands of rockets from Gaza into Israel and breaking through the electronic boarder barrier, causing the loss of hundreds of Israeli lives, and the taking of several Israelis as captives including women and children, into Gaza. In response, Israel declared “Operation Swords of Iron,” involving a brutal and continuous aerial attack on Gaza that claimed hundreds of lives. and various acts of aggression in the West Bank, resulting in the deaths of several Palestinians. The true extent of the recent events’ damage remains unknown, marking the beginning of a period of immense suffering.Heavenly Father, as this period of violence and bloodshed unfolds, we pray for Your justice and mercy. We pray for all who are suffering. We lift up all innocent people in particular the people of Gaza who are vulnerable and helpless to the Israeli airstrikes. May we remember that the recent events are connected to the long history of the Nakba and Israeli systematic oppression against the Palestinian people. Lord, only a just and lasting solution will end the cycle of violence. We call on the international community to work towards this end.Lord in Your mercy…hear our prayer Stay Informed on Palestine MennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends:   Organizations Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA) Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel) Mennonite Central Committee Palestine (MCC) IsraelChristian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR) Kairos PalestineKairos USAAmericans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU) Christian Zionism Palestinian Christian Alliance for Peace Palestine Portal  Web Publications Mondeweiss The Electronic Intifada +972 Magazine B’Tselem Palestine InSight

MENNONITE PALESTINE ISRAEL NETWORK

MennoPIN Update – May 26, 2023 In This Issue Is Israel Unraveling from Within? Forgotten Gaza A Learning Tour to Palestine – Peacemakers Pilgrimage to the Holy Land Washington Post Documents Extrajudicial Killings in Jenin Stay Informed on Palestine Is Israel Unraveling from Within? A demonstrator with a sign against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a march against the government’s judicial reform bill in Tel Aviv, 1 April 2023 (AFP) Is Israel beginning to unravel from within? Jonathan Cook, award-winning British author and journalist living in Nazareth, thinks so. Writing in Middle East Eye, Cook boldly states: “As Israel celebrates its 75th anniversary, the state-building project it cemented into place in 1948 by expelling 750,000 Palestinians from their homeland is showing the first signs of unravelling.” Cook argues that Israel’s deep troubles arise not from external forces, such as pressures from the international community or military attacks, but from within Israel’s internal contradictions. The current divisions in Israeli society, evidenced by the massive protests again Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s attempt to overhaul and weaken the judicial branch of government, have roots, Cook contends, deep within the very founding of Israel in 1948. Netanyahu’s recent merciless bombing of civilians in Gaza is one example of how he is trying to bring about unity through war, killing dozens of Gazans. As always, Palestinians pay the price, but the Islamic Jihad within Gaza plays right into Netanyahu’s hands when they launch their own missiles into Israel, killing a few civilians. Violence always begets violence. Read more on why Cook believes that “[Israel’s] leaders have created a monster they can no longer tame,” click here. Forgotten Gaza Crowding Around the Gaza Boarder (Public Domain) The recent daily bombing of Gaza by Israeli forces weighs heavily on the heart of Jonathan Kuttab, MennoPIN Steering Committee member and Executive Director of Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA). In addition to the horrendous pain and suffering caused by Israel’s eighteen-year-old blockade and periodic bombing of Gaza, Kuttab also laments the forgotten status of Gaza, even among supporters of Palestine: “It is truly tragic that much of the world, including those interested in Israel/Palestine, is only concerned about Gaza when there is actual fighting and deaths involved, but that as soon as a particular round of fighting subsides, it fades into oblivion…It is unconscionable how routine and forgotten Gaza has become.” He continues: “Yet, we only think of Gaza when, our of their utter desperation and, usually, as a response to some Israeli provocation, [Hamas of the Islamic Jihad] shoot some of the home-made futile rockets into Israel, which leads to a punishing response by a sophisticated Israeli army.” For Jonathan’s entire article, go here. Peacemakers Pilgrimage to the Holy Land The Holy Land is rich in sacred history, a place where one can walk in the footsteps of the Prince of Peace; but it’s also a land rife with conflict and injustice, a place where people are seeking to make Christ’s message of peace, justice, and reconciliation a reality. The “Peacemaker’s Pilgrimage to the Holy Land” will provide you with the opportunity to experience both the ancient stones of biblical history, as well as the “living stones” as embodied in the ministries of those working to promote Christ’s vision of peace with justice. Learn more about the pilgrimage here.  Washington Post Documents Extrajudicial Killings in Jenin (Washington Post) Slowly, if cautiously, the mainstream media are giving more voice to Palestinians and evidence of their suffering. In a May 26, 2023 Washington Post exclusive investigation, a careful and harrowing analysis by reporters documents the “war crimes” and “extrajudicial killings” of three people last March in Jenin, including a 14-year-old child, Omar Awadin. With graphic portrayal, the Post details every step of the attack by the elite Israel military unit known as Yamam, killing two unarmed “militants” amidst a crowded shopping area, filled with civilians, including the boy who was also killed. Yamam is under the control of Netanyahu-appointed right-wind extremist and Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir. Read the entire article here. Stay Informed on Palestine MennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends: OrganizationsFriends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA)Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel)Mennonite Central Committee Palestine and IsraelChristian Peacemaker Teams (CPT)U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR)Kairos PalestineKairos USAAmericans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU)Christian ZionismPalestinian Christian Alliance for PeacePalestine PortalWeb PublicationsMondeweissThe Electronic Intifada+972 MagazineB’TselemPalestine InSight—  Mennonite Palestine-Israel Network mennopin@gmail.com | mennopin.org | facebook.com/mennopin | twitter.com/mennopinSteering Committee: Anthony Khair (Mennonite Central Committee, Washington, DC) Bob Atchison (Manhattan Mennonite Church, Manhattan, KS) Dorothy Jean Weaver (Community Mennonite Church, Harrisonburg, VA) Joe Roos (Peace Mennonite Fellowship, Claremont, CA) Jonathan Kuttab (Palestinian lawyer and human rights activist, Manheim, PA) Lydia Brenneman (Lima Mennonite Church, Lima, OH) Rod Stafford (Portland Mennonite Church, Portland, OR) Zachary Murray (Mennonite Central Committee, Washington, DC)

MennoPIN Update – May 16, 2023

In This Issue

The Never-Ending Nakba
The World Cup and Palestine
Stay Informed on Palestine

The Never-Ending Nakba

Today is May 16, 2023, one day after Palestine commemorates the Nakba (Arabic for catastrophe), the painful memory of when Israeli militants emptied nearly 500 Palestinian villages through massacres and forced removal, creating 750,000 refugees. The Nakba has continued for 75 years with the Israeli government, using a U.S.-funded military force, executing its policies of administrative detention, land confiscation, home demolition, the erection of dividing walls, settler colonialism, and assassination of civilians and press.

But even today, the Nakba goes on and on with a boy in Nablus shot down and killed by Israeli military might intent on maintaining absolute control of Palestinian lives. The Nakba is a never-ending spiral of suppression and the attempt to erase ever remnant of Palestinian life and culture.

In this issue of the MennoPIN Update, we share with you two articles by Palestinians who argue that the Nakba began years before May 15, 1948, the day Israel celebrates its beginning as a nation state. Jonathan Kuttab is a member of the MennoPIN Steering Committee, Executive Director of Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA) and a human rights attorney, practicing international law in Israel, Palestine and the United States. Ghada Karmi, writing in Mondoweiss, was born in Jerusalem and received a Doctor of Medicine at Bristol University. She established the first British-Palestinian medical charity.

Jonathan Kuttab
As we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Nakba (“catastrophe”) of May 15, 1948, many commentators have been pointing out that the Catastrophe did not simply occur on that date or year but rather that it is an ongoing catastrophe, beginning prior to 1948 and continuing to the present day.

May 15, 1948 marks the creation of the State of Israel, and it represents the height of the campaign for the destruction of the Palestinian community which permitted that creation. Even prior to 1948, and well before the entrance of the Arab armies into the fight, the armed forces of the Zionists had substantially carried out a successful campaign to depopulate hundreds of Arab villages, drive out their occupants through terror and massacres, take over their lands and properties, and expand their control far beyond those areas allocated unfairly to them under the UN partition resolution of 1947. That resolution granted to the Zionists approximately 51% of the “territory” of Palestine, even though Jews constituted at that time only one third of the population. And, despite intensive efforts to buy land from wealthy absentee landowners, they only held ownership of about 7% of the land.

There are three basic elements to the Nakba. All three were essential for the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine. All three elements continue to operate today. First is the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of the land’s original inhabitants (and the barring of their return), which together with a massive influx of migration was intended to create a Jewish demographic majority. The ongoing refusal to allow Palestinian refugees to return, as well as continued attempts to push out additional numbers of Arabs in the years since, attests to the ongoing Nakba on the demographic front. As fragmentation and apartheid became the standard way of life for the remaining Palestinian population, the refugees were restricted entirely from accessing the “higher strata” of recognized rights, such as Israeli citizenship, East Jerusalem residency, West Bank residency, or Gaza residency (as opposed to outright exile).

Continue reading the full article here.

Ghada Karmi
It is that time of year when the annual commemoration of Israel’s creation in my homeland, and the disaster it led to, comes around, yet again with no end to the conflict in sight. Israel’s land grabs, ethnic cleansing, and human rights abuses against Palestinians continue unabated, unpunished, and unaccountable.

Seventy-five years ago, Israel was established on the ruins of Palestine. In that process, my family was forced to flee our home in Jerusalem. Israel’s creation, officially declared on May 15, 1948, marked the start of our long exile, even as our eviction was being celebrated for installing another people in our place. In the following decades, we watched helplessly as the new state grew in strength and dominance to become a regional superpower. Today, Israel is a nuclear power with an army ranked the fifth largest in the world. It enjoys the unstinting support of Western countries, most especially the United States. The U.S. provides Israel with advanced weaponry, intelligence sharing, and political and diplomatic support. The West regards it as an integral part of the Western world. The European Union has accorded Israel a privileged status in trade and access to EU research programs, exactly as if it were a European state. Marking Israel’s anniversary this April, the EU Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, falling over herself with praise for Israel, even enthused that Israel had “made the desert bloom.”

Continue reading the full article here.

World Cup and Palestine

Photo: A Palestinian flag in the crowd during the Tunisia vs. Australia soccer match in Qatar. (Credit: Showkat Shafi?Al Jazeer)

After watching the most eventful World Cup final people would think that Argentina won the Qatar World cup. However, Palestine took the World Cup’s respect and love from every fan worldwide who were chanting Free-Palestine at the first ever World Cup hosted in an Arab country. These fans raised the Palestinian voice and flag everywhere in Qatar supporting the Palestinian cause in disgust of the Abraham accords which neglected Palestinian’s rights by
giving more power to Israel that was approved of Gulf countries such as The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco. The Arabic Gulf has always been against Israel due to the horrific violations they have caused towards Palestinians. However, the Abraham accords were initiated to begin “peace treaties” between the gulf and Israel. Yet, these treaties were only made by high end officials for national interests resulting as bilateral trade and commerce opportunities for these countries. This neglected people’s opinions about the situation and left Palestinians with no hope as their own have ignored them. During the World Cup these countries’ true voices spoke their minds to the world and opposed these “treaties” and exposed them for dehumanizing Palestinians. The people of Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Qatar, and thousand of soccer fanatics worldwide raised the Palestinian cause in solidarity to tell the world that Israel is an apartheid state who has been abusing their power towards Palestinian civilians. Fans even denied getting interviewed by Israeli channels in Qatar to show their disapproval towards these accords by public humiliation of the Israeli journalists. The World Cup has always been bringing people together from different nationalities over a soccer game. Yet, this one brought the whole world together to stand up against apartheid.

Stay Informed on Palestine

MennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends:

Organizations

• Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA)
• Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel)
• Mennonite Central Committee Palestine and Israel
• Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT)
• U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR)
• Kairos Palestine
• Kairos USA
• Americans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU)
• Christian Zionism
• Palestinian Christian Alliance for Peace
• Palestine Portal

Web Publications

• Mondeweiss
• The Electronic Intifada
• +972 Magazine
• B’Tselem
• Palestine InSight

December 2022 Monthly Update

In This Issue

Christmas Greetings and a Request
Israel’s Election: Apartheid Unmasked
Norway Gets it Right on BDS
An Invitation to Engage with the Gaza YMCA
The Firing of Katie Halper
HR 2374 – Peace and Tolerance in Palestine Education Act
Stay Informed on Palestine
Prayer

Christmas Greetings and a Request

Well, maybe not everyone around the manger was filled with adoration, but all of us on the MennoPIN Steering Committee are grateful to walk with you as we together seek peace, justice and freedom throughout Palestine, that “peace on Earth and good will to all” the shepherds heard sung. We hope you had a blessed Christmas and that 2023 brings for you renewed energy and a sense of hope for all of the people of Palestine.

We rarely ask for financial support, but as 2022 comes to a close, please consider a gift to MennoPIN. In July of 2023 the Mennonite Church USA will hold a convention in Kansas City, MO. MennoPIN plans to have a strong presence at the convention in two ways: (1) through an exhibit booth in which we plan to raise up the realities and dangers of both Christian Zionism and Israeli apartheid and (2) through workshops that show what it is like on the ground in Palestine and how we can all contribute to and work for the end to the occupation and apartheid. We are especially hopeful to have present one of two people from Gaza, with whom we’ve developed relationships through the MennoPIN Gaza Twining Initiative, to help lead at least one of the workshops.

To have a successful presence will involve financial costs and that is why we are asking for your help. All members of the steering committee are volunteers, and we have no paid staff. So, every penny you contribute will go to our efforts at MennoCon23 and other projects during 2023. To make a tax-deductible contribution, please send a check, made payable to Peace Mennonite Fellowship with a notation in the memo line for MennoPIN, to Joe Roos, MennoPIN, 479 Crosby Street, Altadena, CA 91001. Thank you very much!

Israel’s Election: Apartheid Unmasked

Look who helped Netanyahu regain power – his new good friends Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Givr (credit Mondoweiss)
 

Last month Israel conducted its fifth national election in the past three years. Benjamin Netanyahu, under criminal investigation, won the election as Prime Minister, but only by bringing the extreme right-wing elements into his coalition. Itamar Ben-Givr, the leader of the Jewish Power party and Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the Religious Party, have teamed up with Netanyahu to form by far the most right-wing government in Israeli history. Finally, for Apartheid Israel, the masks have come off.

Both men and their respective followers are heirs and devoted followers of the late infamous Rabbi Meir Kahane, whose Kach party was declared illegal in Israel since the mid-1990s. Now, Givr and Smotrich are bring Kahane’s racism and extremism to the center of Israeli politics under Netanyahu. Both have been granted significant governmental posts which promises to have dire consequences for Palestine. For example:

Givr wants to establish a “migration ministry” with the purpose of expelling Palestinians who he considers disloyal to Israel. Just after the election, Givr stated: “It’s time to show [Palestinians] who is master of the house here.” In October 2022, just before the elections, he pulled a gun and threatened to shoot nonviolent protestors in Sheikh Jarrah. In December 2021 he also pulled a gun on a Palestine security guard who asked him to move his illegally parked car. Over the years, Givr has been indicted by Israeli courts over fifty times and convicted a dozen times, including supporting a terrorist organization. And now he has great power over Palestinians.

Smotrich, with a racist history and as a self-described “proud homophobe,” has declared his commitment to formally annex the occupied West Bank and to expel indigenous Palestinians who do not accept permanent subjugation under Israeli rule. He told a right-wing religious gathering: “According to Jewish law, there must always be some inferiority.” He went on to explain that Palestinians who accepted this second-class citizenship would be considered “resident aliens.” And for those who resisted second-class citizenship: “The Israeli military will know what to do.”

The Biden Administration, which has publicly shown it wasn’t totally pleased with this situation, has not signaled any consequences for Israel. Netanyahu has tried to appease international opposition by claiming that there is no need to worry, that he will keep Givr and Smotrich under control. To think of Bibi as the adult in the room is laughable to the absurd.

The liberal American Jewish community, spokespersons and lobbyist are, however, taking the change in government seriously. Thomas Friedman, ever the Israeli defender, recently wrote in the New York Times that he thinks Israel is in serious danger of losing international support. And on the day following the election, Jeremy Ben-Ami, head of the J-Street lobby, stated bluntly: “Last night’s election results in Israel are deeply troubling for all who care about Israel and who care about liberal democracy globally…The likely formation of an ultra-right Netanyahu government should force a moment of serious reckoning for all American’s who care about the nature of the US-Israel relationship and about a just, equal and democratic future for both Israelis and Palestinians.”

Even if the aftermath of the Israeli elections produces, in the long-term, cracks in the US-Israel relationship, in the much shorter term, Palestine will likely suffer greatly, and a violent response becomes an increasing possibility. Israeli apartheid is impossible to deny.

Norway Gets it Right on BDS

The Jewish newspaper Haaretz and the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement (BDS) have just reported that Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, with assets valued at $1.3 trillion, will reportedly end investments in firms tied to apartheid Israel’s illegal settlement enterprises in Palestine. If Norway follows through, this will be one of the biggest victories of the BDS, initiated by Palestinians as one way to nonviolently oppose the Israeli occupation and violence inflicted upon Palestinians on a daily basis.

She was Just Looking for Her Cat – Now She’s Dead

Jana Zakarneh (inset) and her body being carried to her grave by mourners [Credit: Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty]

16-year-old Jana Zakarneh lived with her family in Jenin, Palestine. Earlier this month she heard gunshots and climbed to the top of her home to look out for her cat. One moment she was standing on the roof, searching for the cat. The next moment she was lying dead in a pool of her own blood, shot by an Israeli sniper with four bullets, one in the head, one to her face and two in her chest.

At first Israel claimed she was an unfortunate victim of crossfire between Israeli military units and Palestinian terrorists. When it was later shown that the so-called “terrorists” were hundreds of meters away and out of the line of sight of Jana, the story changed to one of an unintended civilian killing. There will be no investigation, military forces said, and no one will be held accountable.

Jana was the 36^th Palestinian minor killed by Israel this year, and the 224^th Palestinian to lose their lives to Israeli gunfire.

An Invitation to Engage with the Gaza YMCA

Parents and visitors mill around at an art display from students of the Gaza YMCA

You are invited to a 1-hour conversation with leaders of the Gaza YMCA on January 14, 2023. Two years ago, the Fellowship of Hope in Elkhart, IN began a relationship with the Gaza YMCA through MennoPIN’s Gaza Twining Initiative.

Through bi-weekly Zoom conversations between the Fellowship of Hope and the Gaza YMCA, the Indiana Mennonite community has “enjoyed and been challenged by the relationship, according to David Janzen. Gaza YMCA leaders Suheil Tarazi and Hani Farah will talk about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the compelling work that the YMCA has been doing to support families in the midst of dire conditions caused by the ongoing Israeli blockade of Gaza and the frequent bombings of Gaza by Israeli military aircraft and drones.

During the Zoom conversation, you will hear directly from Christian Palestinians and get a better picture of what life is like on the ground in Gaza, a 2,000,000 person outdoor prison in which Israel allows into Gaza barely just enough food to meet the bare minimum daily nutritional requirements to live.

No registration is needed. Simply log into the Zoom meeting on Saturday, January 14, 2023 at 10 am Eastern/9:00 am Central/8:00 am Mountain/7:00 am Pacific/5 pm Gaza. The Zoom link is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86324229910?pwd=emszSlJRQkprWnVJU0laQnZlekVpdz09

The Firing of Katie Halper

 In recent years the politics and civics around the concept of antisemitism have become more complicated. The organization International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) released a ‘working legal nonbinding’ definition of antisemitism in 2016. The working definition seeks to give a broad application of what antisemitism means. However, IHRA defines about half of their examples of antisemitic activity in connection with criticism of Israel. IHRA’s working definition has been adopted by the US State Department, The ADL and sum 20 U.S. states in varying degrees.

This language has been, as Rebecca Ruth Gold states, an intervention, “in public discourse by way of obfuscation. Defining and adopting this definition in a broad way allows for the muddling of that public discourse. This could be in part why Katie Halper, a Jewish political commentator for The Hill, was fired. In September of 2022 Katie Halper was let go due to her approval of Rashida Tlaib’s description of Israel as an apartheid state. This approval of criticism was labeled antisemitic. Unfortunately, Halper being fired from The Hill is not an isolated event. Recently the new UN Special Rapporteur for Palestine, Francesca Albanese, reportedly was deemed antisemitic by Israel and ‘one-sided’ by the US’s representative to the Human Rights Council at the UN.

What makes the public discourse around the firing of Katie Halper contentious is there has also been an increase in antisemitism within U.S. society. The most prolific example of this would be Ye (Kanye) West’s recent unearthing a slew of antisemitic talking points across many platforms. This language is harmful to Jews and ought to be condemned. Yet, antisemitism and critique of a nation-state’s actions are not one in the same; even though there can be overlap in some cases. However, Jewishness is not intrinsically tied the nation-state of Israel. For some tying Jewishness to the current state of Israel is seen as antisemitic itself because it renders a Jewish identity as monolithic, as are Jews who support Israel as Medinat Yisrael.

Within this contention however, we should recognize the firing of Katie Halper is a signal that antisemitism is being used to divert culpability from Israel. Efforts to call attention to a rise of antisemitic actions can coexist at the same time of denouncing the actions of Israel against Palestinians. We ought to be able to condemn both types of actions within public discourse if we want to bring about a more peaceful world. In many ways the Mennonite commitment to peace building requires us to span multiple arrays of injustice and have a prophetic voice towards it. Bridging a place of division for reconciliation is a place that Mennonites have historically held. But, as Desmond Tutu argues, true reconciliation of people is through the proclaiming of sin or injustices, and the healing that comes from rehabilitating each party to themselves which will bring about a new way forward from the ashes of conflict.

HR 2374 – Peace and Tolerance in Palestine Education Act

On April 5, 2021, Democratic Representative Brad Sherman introduce to the House bill H.R. 2374. The bill is entitled Peace and Tolerance in Palestinian Education Act and seeks to surveil Palestinian education in Palestine Authority governed areas and Gaza. Through this surveillance the U.S. government would be required to not fund or support any education that they deemed harmful to the state of Israel.

What the bills defines as harmful education is wide, but these are some of the topics: (1) maps that are misleading or include Jerusalem as the capitol of Palestine; (2) using math of the deaths of Palestinians during the First or Second Intifada, (3) portraying violence or aggression against Israel or Israelis, and (4) that no language or definition Israel as an apartheid state should be included. If this is not upheld in the event of the Bill being passed, the U.S. would withhold funds from the UNRWA budget or any other organization that supports education in Palestine receiving U.S. government funds.

The fight for peace and not further harm is the goal in any conflict, however, this bill raises some concerns. The first is the push for the US to control Palestinian education in respect to the State of Israel. At the moment Palestinian civil society has been constricted heavily by the sanctions coming from Israel. This would further limit that space by disallowing Palestinians from determining their own story and politics through their shared history; especially after the Department of State’s adoption of IHRA’s definition of antisemitism. The second is while Palestinian education is brought under suspicion, Israeli education gets a pass. Often times, Israeli Hebrew texts books participate in similar dehumanizing rhetoric that could be found in Palestinian educational materials. A third way forward would be to not only call to reform of one side of educational materials but all.

Stay Informed on Palestine

MennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends:

Organizations

• Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA)
• Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel)
• Mennonite Central Committee Palestine and Israel
• Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT)
• U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR)
• Kairos Palestine
• Kairos USA
• Americans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU)
• Christian Zionism
• Palestinian Christian Alliance for Peace
• Palestine Portal

Web Publications

• Mondeweiss
• The Electronic Intifada
• +972 Magazine
• B’Tselem
• Palestine InSight

Prayer

 The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, Theophilos, III spoke out at a Christmas tree lighting at Jerusalem’s Jaffa Gate on Saturday, the 17^th of December. Addressing the crowd from the balcony of the Imperial Hotel in the Old City, he warned that Christians in the Holy Land have become target of repeated attacks by radical Israeli groups in a deliberate attempt to expel them. Lord, we echo the words of the Patriarch in our prayer: “We long for peace and so let us not rend this fabric of our historic common life that has provided room enough down the ages for all who call the Holy Land their home.” Sabeel Wave of Prayer

— 
Mennonite Palestine-Israel Network
mennopin@gmail.com | mennopin.org | facebook.com/mennopin | twitter.com/mennopin

Steering Committee:
Anthony Khair (Mennonite Central Committee, Washington, DC)
Bob Atchison (Manhattan Mennonite Church, Manhattan, KS)
Dorothy Jean Weaver (Community Mennonite Church, Harrisonburg, VA)
Joe Roos (Peace Mennonite Fellowship, Claremont, CA)
Jonathan Kuttab (Palestinian lawyer and human rights activist, Manheim, PA)
Lydia Brenneman (Lima Mennonite Church, Lima, OH)
Rod Stafford (Portland Mennonite Church, Portland, OR)
Zachary Murray (Mennonite Central Committee, Washington, DC)

MennoPIN Monthly Update: October 2022View this email in your browserMENNONITE PALESTINE ISRAEL NETWORK

October 2022 Monthly Update In This Issue Did the WCC Silence Palestinian Voices? A New Free Film called “Boycott” Ben & Jerry’s and Book.com call out Israel Google’s Complicity in Israeli Apartheid Stay Informed on Palestine Did the WCC Silence Palestinian Voices? The World Council of Churches (WCC), representing over 350 global denominations and church bodies from 120 countries, met in August 2022 for its 11th General Assembly since its founding shortly after World War II. Under the theme, “Christ’s Love Moves the World to Reconciliation and Unity,” it was not until the final day of the nine-day assembly that the issue of Palestine and Israel came up, but unity was nowhere to be seen. During the deliberations there was both the good and the bad. The Good. The Anglican Church of South Africa brought forth a resolution naming Israeli apartheid and encouraging the assembly to stand with Palestinians as well as Israelis. The resolution was supported by 17 church bodies. But the Evangelical Church of Germany (EKD) strongly opposed the use of the word “apartheid” in the resolution. After vigorous debate, the resolution was edited to say, in part: “[N]umerous international, Israeli and Palestinian human rights organizations and legal bodies have published studies and reports describing the policies and actions of Israel as amounting to “apartheid” under international law. Within this Assembly…We are not of one mind.” Even lacking unity on the use of the term “apartheid,” the WCC agreed to study the issue of Israeli apartheid, which could at some point have a positive impact. The Bad. One of the primary objections to the edited resolution was the priority of unity over justice. Rev. Chris Ferguson, former General Secretary of the World Communion of Reformed Churches, put it this way: “The German church leaders did not succeed in closing the door on the WCC’s study of apartheid, even though they effectively reframed the suffering of Palestinians as a question of church unity rather than justice.” Emphasizing the priority of justice, Rev. Tyrone Pitts, General Secretary Emeritus of the Progressive National Baptist Convention, stated bluntly: “I was raised under Jim Crow laws in the U.S. During my time in Palestine, I saw Palestinians suffering under apartheid.” An equally troubling question arose from the Kairos Palestine Solidarity Network in Germany: Were Palestinian voices silenced at the WCC assembly? There were only three opportunities for Palestinians to speak. One young Palestinian woman was disallowed because her remarks were deemed unacceptable because it included the word “apartheid.” She was offered a reworded statement that did not include “apartheid” and she, out of conscience, would not read it. She was then told she could not speak at all. One workshop on Palestine, led by biblical scholar and pastor Munther Isaac was held at a hotel outside the assembly area, attended by very few people. Isaac said that Palestinians were “disheartened” by the relatively week resolution wording: “What is happening is apartheid. The facts are on the ground.” A New Free Film Called “Boycott”Voices from the Holy Land has just released a new film entitled: “Boycott.” They are promoting it as “A bracing look at the far-reaching implications of anti-boycott legislation designed to penalize companies and individuals that choose to boycott Israel due to its human rights record…Boycott is an inspiring tale of everyday Americans standing up to protect our rights in an age of shifting politics and threats of freedom of speech.” To register to see the October 9 viewing of Boycott, register here. Ben & Jerry’s and Book.com Call Out Israel PALESTINIAN ARTISTS PAINT A MURAL IN GAZA CITY TO HONOR BEN & JERRY’S DECISION TO BOYCOTT ISRAELI SETTLEMENTS. JULY 29, 2021. (PHOTO BY YOUSSEF ABU WATFA)Airbnb backed down after promising to not have listings in Israeli settlements, but Ben & Jerry’s and Book.com are not letting up. Ben & Jerry’s is suing its parent company Unilever to block the sale of its Israeli business, stating that “we continue to believe it is inconsistent with Ben & Jerry’s values for our ice cream to be sold in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.” The suit states that “the company’s core values of advancing human rights and dignity, supporting social and economic justice for historically marginalized communities…are integral to Ben & Jerry’s identity. Bookings.com recently decided to display a safety warning on its listings in the illegally-occupied West Bank. It said it notify customers traveling to Israeli settlements that the areas are “conflict-affected or high-risk…and may pose greater risks.” Hopefully, Bookings.com will stick by its commitment. Google’s Complicity in Israeli ApartheidAriel Koren, a Jewish Google worker, was recently reassigned to Brazil after she registered a protest with the company for Google’s Nimbus Project, a joint effort with Amazon and the Israeli government and military. She charged that “Google systematically silences Palestinian, Jewish, Arab and Muslim voices concerned about Google’s complicity in violations of Palestinian human rights.” 700 coworkers signed a petition siding with her in Google’s act of retaliation against her. On Democracy Now! Koren stated that she and other Google co-workers started to organize a group they called Jewish Diaspora in Tech. Google’s retaliation against her and others there, Koren said that Google is putting forward “false narratives of antisemitism that are designed to squelch folks who speak out for Palestinian rights. And this is a tool that Google is using to protect its business interests with Israel, and in this case, to silence opposition to Project Nimbus.” Koren chose to leave Google. Stay Informed on PalestineMennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends: OrganizationsFriends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA)Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel)Mennonite Central Committee Palestine and IsraelChristian Peacemaker Teams (CPT)U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR)Kairos PalestineKairos USAAmericans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU)Christian ZionismPalestinian Christian Alliance for PeacePalestine PortalWeb PublicationsMondeweissThe Electronic Intifada+972 MagazineB’TselemPalestine InSightPrayerPrayer Religious leaders came together in the heart of Jerusalem to pray for peace in the Ukraine. Christian, Druze, Jewish and Muslim leaders met in Moscow Square and stood by the Russian Orthodox Church. They prayed beside a letter posted on the wall. It was written to the Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and asked him to bring his influence to bear on President Putin to take immediate steps to de-escalate the conflict.  Lord, we join with the faith leaders in Jerusalem and around the world in their prayers for an end to the hostilities taking place in Ukraine. We pray for the millions of refugees and for all those who are trying to support them. Lord, in your mercy…Sabeel Wave of Prayer—  Mennonite Palestine-Israel Network mennopin@gmail.com | mennopin.org | facebook.com/mennopin | twitter.com/mennopinSteering Committee: Bob Atchison (Manhattan Mennonite Church, Manhattan, KS) Dorothy Jean Weaver (Community Mennonite Church, Harrisonburg, VA) Hannah Markey (Mennonite Central Committee Washington Office, Washington, DC) Joe Roos (Peace Mennonite Fellowship, Claremont, CA) Jonathan Kuttab (Palestinian lawyer and human rights activist, Manheim, PA) Lydia Brenneman (Lima Mennonite Church, Lima, OH) Rod Stafford (Portland Mennonite Church, Portland, OR)

MennoPIN Monthly Update: March 2022View this email in your browserMENNONITE PALESTINE ISRAEL NETWORK

March 2022 Monthly Update In This IssueIn This Issue Jonathan Kuttab on Palestinian and Israeli Violence Amnesty International Joins Apartheid Call Targeting Elbit, Puma and Pillsbury MennoPIN Online Christian Zionism Survey Jonathan Kuttab and the Two-State Solution – April 5 Webinar Become a Gaza Twinning Congregation Stay Informed on Palestine PrayerJonathan Kuttab on Palestinian and Israeli ViolenceAs Easter, the Passover and Ramadan converge in the weeks ahead, violence in Palestine/Israel is a very real possibility according to Jonathan Kuttab, MennoPIN Steering Committee member and Executive Director of FOSNA (Friends of Sabeel North America). After the recent killing of eleven Israelis by Palestinians, while not condoning the violence, Jonathan writes: “The biggest problem, however, with those who decry Palestinian violence is not just their selectivity and the higher value they place on Jewish and Israeli lives, or even their failure to examine the socio-political context that led to violence in the first place. It is that their critique of violence is limited only to death and injury by individual actors who shoot, stab, or bomb their enemies.” He continues: “For Palestinians the violence perpetrated against them is not limited to Israeli guns and shootings, albeit significant. It is often more subtle and pervasive and covers all areas of their lives. The symbol of Israeli violence for Palestinians is often not the gun, but the bulldozer.” Read his entire article here. Amnesty International Joins Apartheid CallOn February 1, Amnesty International released a report titled Israel’s Apartheid Against Palestinians: Cruel System of Domination and Crime Against Humanity. Included in the report is documentation of the Israeli government’s human rights abuses and violations of international law. Additionally, the report highlights the U.S. government’s responsibility in perpetuating apartheid, as the U.S. continues to sell arms to Israel and ignore ongoing human rights violations. Since the report was issued, it has received a wide range of responses ranging from praise to condemnation. Criticisms of the report largely include accusations of antisemitism and claims that Israel is wrongfully demonized. In a February 1 tweet, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) stated that the label of apartheid further incites hatred and increases antisemitism. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) called the apartheid charge an “outrageous accusation”, suggesting Israel is unfairly and disproportionately targeted by the international community. These perspectives were similarly articulated by nine Democratic House members in a joint statement. Pushback has also come from the Israel lobby in the U.S., although differing responses taken by lobby groups expose internal divisions. For example, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) said the report was a “misguided and backward-looking effort to vilify Israel” and heighten antisemitism. J Street similarly rejected the label of apartheid; however, the organization cautioned against misplaced accusations of antisemitism, stating such charges “do a further disservice to the critical fight against the very real scourge of antisemitism.” While the Amnesty report elicited condemnation from some members of Congress and lobby groups, it simultaneously fueled global efforts to speak out against Israel’s occupation of Palestine. In an opinion piece written by David Hearst for Mondoweiss, he applauds the report, stating that it demonstrates apartheid is not “an accident of history” but rather a systematic establishment of a Jewish majority state. Hearst argues that the Israeli government is losing support globally, in part due to reports like Amnesty’s and the advocacy efforts of grassroots movements. On January 29, Episcopalians in Washington, D.C. adopted a resolution to “oppose Israel’s apartheid,” offering another example of the global push to reject Israel’s apartheid regime.Targeting Elbit, Puma and Pillsbury As private manufacturers continue operating in illegal Israeli settlements and further oppressing Palestinian people, global campaigns have arisen to boycott these companies and document their violations of international law. For example, General Mills produces Pillsbury products in the illegal settlement of Atarot, and therefore Pillsbury profits from the oppression and dispossession of Palestinians. In response to Pillsbury’s actions, congregations and faith-based coalitions have joined in the Boycott Pillsbury campaign. In November, Ainsworth United Church of Christ of Portland, Oregon pledged to be a Pillsbury-Free-Church in support of Palestinian human rights. In addition to Pillsbury, Puma is complicit in normalizing Israel’s illegal settlements. Puma is the primary sponsor of the Israeli Football Association (IFA), which includes teams located in illegal settlements. Additionally, Puma has and continues to license with manufacturers located in settlements. Delta Galil, Puma’s former licensee, is listed in the UN database of illegal settlement companies. Finally, activists continue to boycott Elbit, a defense and security company. Elbit is the Israeli government’s largest security contractor, producing the surveillance systems, drones, and ammunition used to oppress Palestinians. In the UK, activists have repeatedly occupied the Elbit subsidiaries to shut down production. Despite these efforts, Elbit’s stocks have risen by 40 percent since Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine, as European nations have started updating and expanding their military operations.MennoPIN Online Christian Zionism SurveyOne aspect of our work is confronting Christian Zionism and offering resources for congregations to become more familiar with this issue. We aim to learn more about your congregation and how we can increase awareness around Christian Zionism. Please consider taking a few minutes to complete this survey.Jonathan Kuttab and the Two-State Solution – April 5 Webinar On April 5, the Western District Conference of the Mennonite Church USA is interviewing Jonathan Kuttab about his book on the Two-State Solution to finding a solution to the seemingly intractable violence between Israel and Palestine. To register, send an email to wdc@mennowdc.org.Become a MennoPIN Gaza Twining Congregation In response to the MC USA “Seeking Peace in Israel Palestine” resolution, MennoPIN launched its Mennonite Twinning Initiative with Gaza, inviting congregations to participate. Since then, several congregations have joined with groups in Gaza to share relationships, tell stories, understand better each other’s context and to share together in mission. Manhattan (KS) Mennonite Church has teamed with the Youth Vision Society (YVS) and, in addition to biweekly Zoom calls of mutual support with YVS staff, the photo above shows one way in which they teamed with YVS to provide food and medical supplies to needy families in Gaza. Fellowship of Hope (IN) has teamed with the Gaza City YMCA with biweekly Zoom calls and was able to help support the YMCA after Israeli bombs in May 2021 did significant damage to their building You, too, can become a MennoPIN twinning congregation and develop similar relationships of mutual benefit. Our experience so far shows that those in Gaza feel deeply supported by the congregation and the congregation is impacted by their partner in a deep and powerful way. You can explore becoming a MennoPIN Gaz Twinning Congregation by visiting our website here https://mennopin.org/mennonite-twinning-initiative-with-gaza/ or send an email to mennopin@gmail.com with Twinning Initiative in the subject line.Stay Informed on PalestineMennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends: OrganizationsFriends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA)Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel)Mennonite Central Committee Palestine and IsraelChristian Peacemaker Teams (CPT)U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR)Kairos PalestineKairos USAAmericans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU)Christian ZionismPalestinian Christian Alliance for PeacePalestine PortalWeb PublicationsMondeweissThe Electronic Intifada+972 MagazineB’TselemPalestine InSightPrayerPrayer On Monday, the 21st of March, religious leaders came together in the heart of Jerusalem to pray for peace in the Ukraine. Christian, Druze, Jewish and Muslim leaders met in Moscow Square and stood by the Russian Orthodox Church. They prayed beside a letter posted on the wall. It was written to the Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and asked him to bring his influence to bear on President Putin to take immediate steps to de-escalate the conflict.  Lord, we join with the faith leaders in Jerusalem and around the world in their prayers for an end to the hostilities taking place in Ukraine. We pray for the millions of refugees and for all those who are trying to support them. Lord, in your mercy…Sabeel Wave of Prayer—  Mennonite Palestine-Israel Network mennopin@gmail.com | mennopin.org | facebook.com/mennopin | twitter.com/mennopinSteering Committee: Bob Atchison (Manhattan Mennonite Church, Manhattan, KS) Dorothy Jean Weaver (Community Mennonite Church, Harrisonburg, VA) Hannah Markey (Mennonite Central Committee Washington Office, Washington, DC) Joe Roos (Peace Mennonite Fellowship, Claremont, CA) Jonathan Kuttab (Palestinian lawyer and human rights activist, Manheim, PA) Lydia Brenneman (Lima Mennonite Church, Lima, OH) Rod Stafford (Portland Mennonite Church, Portland, OR)

MennoPIN Monthly Update: January 2022View this email in your browserMENNONITE PALESTINE ISRAEL NETWORK

January 2022 Monthly Update In This IssueMennoPIN Online Engagement Survey Sabeel/FOSNA Memorial Service for Desmond Tutu MennoPIN Gaza Twinning Initiative Jonathan Kuttab: “Anti-Semitism is a Sin. Period.” Six New Booklets from Sabeel Haaretz Publisher – Israel is an Apartheid State Stay Informed on Palestine Prayer MennoPIN Online Engagement SurveyAs we reflect on the past year and look ahead to 2022, MennoPIN is eager to hear from you! What content do you want to receive from us in this new year? Would you like to see us active on social media? Please take a moment to complete this brief survey (less than one minute) and let us know how we can better engage with you. We greatly appreciate your feedback and thank you so much!  Sabeel/FOSNA Memorial Service for Desmond TutuSabeel (Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in East Jerusalem) and FOSNA (Friends of Sabeel North America) have teamed up to hold a memorial service in honor of Desmond Tutu and his strong and powerful support of Palestinian freedom and justice. Tutu said many times that Israel’s apartheid state was worse than that in South Africa. Tutu was a patron of both Sabeel and FOSNA. Join Sabeel and FOSNA in this special service on Saturday, January 29, 2022, at 8 pm Jerusalem time/1 pm Eastern/noon Central/11 am Mountain/10 am Pacific. You can register here. Become a MennoPIN Gaza Twining CongregationIn response to the MC USA “Seeking Peace in Israel Palestine” resolution, MennoPIN launched its Mennonite Twinning Initiative with Gaza, inviting congregations to participate. Since then, several congregations have joined with groups in Gaza to share relationships, tell stories, understand better each other’s context and to share together in mission. Manhattan (KS) Mennonite Church has teamed with the Youth Vision Society (YVS) and, in addition to biweekly Zoom calls of mutual support with YVS staff, the photo above shows one way in which they teamed with YVS to provide food and medical supplies to needy families in Gaza. Fellowship of Hope (IN) has teamed with the Gaza City YMCA with biweekly Zoom calls and was able to help support the YMCA after Israeli bombs in May 2021 did significant damage to their building You, too, can become a MennoPIN twinning congregation and develop similar relationships of mutual benefit. Our experience so far shows that those in Gaza feel deeply supported by the congregation and the congregation is impacted by their partner in a deep and powerful way. You can explore becoming a MennoPIN Gaz Twinning Congregation by visiting our website here or send an email to mennopin@gmail.com with Twinning Initiative in the subject line. Jonathan Kuttab: “Anti-Semitism is a Sin. Period.Jonathan Kuttab is a member of the MennoPIN Steering Committee, Executive Director of FOSNA and a long-time human rights attorney in Israel, Palestine and in the United States. For FOSNA he recently pinned an editorial entitled: “Anti-Semitism is a Sin. Period,” in which he distinguished false charges of anti-Semitism from the all-to-resent acts of true anti-Semitism. You can read his article here on the FOSNA website.  Six New Booklets from SabeelSabeel has recently published six new booklets written by Naim Ateek on Palestinian Liberation Theology. You can find brief review of each booklet here and write to purchase them here.   Haaretz Publisher: Israel is an “Apartheid State” Amos Schocken (Credit: Haaretz)Haaretz is one of the most respected newspapers in Israel and Adam Schocken is the third generation of his family to be its publisher. Recently, Schocken became one of a growing number of Israeli voices to call Israel an apartheid state. In response to a right-wing member of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, Schocken made this statement: “The product of Zionism, the State of Israel, is not a Jewish and democratic state, but has instead become an apartheid state, plain and simple.” Stay Informed on PalestineMennoPIN keeps you informed about Palestine through our monthly update, special alerts, calls to action, important resources and tour possibilities, all from an Anabaptist perspective. But there are additional excellent organizations and web publications that can keep you informed, some on a daily basis. We invite you to explore these groups and visit the web publications as another way to keep current and active for the people of Palestine. Here are some MennoPIN recommends: OrganizationsFriends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA)Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center (Sabeel)Mennonite Central Committee Palestine and IsraelChristian Peacemaker Teams (CPT)U.S. Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR)Kairos PalestineKairos USAAmericans for Middle East Understanding (AMEU)Christian ZionismPalestinian Christian Alliance for PeacePalestine PortalWeb PublicationsMondeweissThe Electronic Intifada+972 MagazineB’TselemPalestine InSightPrayerPrayer Dozens of Palestinian Bedouins have been wounded in a crackdown by Israeli forces on a protest against continuing Israeli forestation work on land residents say they privately own near the southern city of Beer al-Sabe (Beer Sheva). The Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) use tree planting as a method of preventing Palestinians from accessing their land and to obliterate Palestinian villages. O’ God, we pray for all those injured as they protested against the unjust forestation on Palestinian lands. We pray that those responsible for the planting, will cease their actions and allow those who own the land to live in peace with full and unrestricted access to their lands. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers. Sabeel Wave of Prayer —  Mennonite Palestine-Israel Network mennopin@gmail.com | mennopin.org | facebook.com/mennopin | twitter.com/mennopinSteering Committee: Bob Atchison (Manhattan Mennonite Church, Manhattan, KS) Dorothy Jean Weaver (Community Mennonite Church, Harrisonburg, VA) Hannah Markey (Mennonite Central Committee Washington Office, Washington, DC) Joe Roos (Peace Mennonite Fellowship, Claremont, CA) Jonathan Kuttab (Palestinian lawyer and human rights activist, Manheim, PA) Lydia Brenneman (Lima Mennonite Church, Lima, OH) Rod Stafford (Portland Mennonite Church, Portland, OR)