Rev ELIZABETH A EATON, Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and Rev Dr MAE ELISE CANNON, executive director of Churches for Middle East Peace, says American lawmakers have a role to play in helping to build peace in the Middle East…
Via RNS
Last year, Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian lands in East Jerusalem and the West Bank and its blockade of Gaza brought increased misery and property violations to the Palestinians: home demolitions, expansion of settlements, detention of Palestinian children, continued restrictions on movement and access and (particularly in Gaza) fears of annexation.
All this took place while the occupied territories were suffering the same scourge of COVID-19 as the rest of us.
Israeli border police officers, right, and Palestinians clash during a protest against the expansion of Israeli Jewish settlements near the West Bank town of Salfit, Thursday, on 3rd December, 2020. PICTURE: AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed/File photo.
The recent agreements between Israel and Arab states benefit these countries’ respective economies, but little or no consultation took place with the Palestinians, and the agreements did little to help end the conflict.
A new year, a new Congress and a new administration, however, offer an opportunity for the US to play a constructive role to reach a just peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
“A new year, a new Congress and a new administration…offer an opportunity for the US to play a constructive role to reach a just peace between Israelis and Palestinians.”
The fundamental question is how Congress and the administration can help build peace. On the question of annexation, the Israeli Government needs to hear more clearly than it has from some American lawmakers that annexation of current Palestinian areas of any kind – de jure or de facto – is unacceptable. Palestinian Lutheran Bishop Sani Ibrahim Azar said last May that, for Palestinians, annexation is “certain to have severe consequences for Israeli and Palestinian people” and, first and foremost, for peace. The bishop said the real issue is “liberation, not annexation”.
Members of Congress and the administration also need to affirm that US funds won’t be used to support annexation and that the Israeli Government should be held accountable for any actions in this regard, which violate international human rights standards. Plans for annexation must not just remain suspended; they must be abandoned.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T
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In the meantime, Congress and the administration need to commit the US to restore robust humanitarian assistance to the Middle East region, specifically including the West Bank and Gaza. As COVID-19 cases continue to rise in these areas, Palestinians are experiencing the impacts of both a global health pandemic and continued occupation. This funding has already been appropriated by Congress and can be restored by the Biden administration without delay. The money will help support critical medical, educational and relief programs in Palestine.
Despite the inattention of the past few years, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is still a major global crisis, and it needs to be addressed with even greater resolve. Religious communities in our country envision a US foreign policy in the Middle East that is guided by a commitment to seeking equality, justice and peaceful resolutions to conflict.
Our newly elected leaders need to take such constructive steps if we are ever truly going to find lasting peace.
Rev Elizabeth A Eaton is Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Rev Dr Mae Elise Cannon is executive director of Churches for Middle East Peace and a pastor in the Evangelical Covenant Church.
