The water shortage in the West Bank continues. This is a result of years of Israel’s discriminatory water policies. The amount of water allowed to the West Bank has not been increased since 1995, although its population has almost doubled since then. As a result, the average Israeli has access to 2-3 times the World Health Organization’s recommended minimum water allowance per day, while the average Palestinian living in the West Bank has access to only 75% of that minimum amount.

• Lord, water is a source of life, and we pray for the people living in Occupied West Bank including East Jerusalem who continue to live with restricted water supplies, especially during this hot summer, while others in the settlements have uninterrupted access to water. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

Palestinian residents of the village of Sur Baher, south east of Jerusalem, have been given until the 18th of July to demolish 100 apartments The Israeli authorities are using the pretext that they are too close to the security fence. The residents will have to demolish their own apartments or they will face heavy demolition costs and fines from the Israeli municipality. So many Palestinians are forced to build without permits as the Israeli authorities refuse to grant them.

• Dear Lord, we pray for the villagers of Sur Baher who will soon have nowhere to live. Slowly but surely the Palestinians are being forced out of their homes. We pray that there would be an international outcry at the way the Israeli government is treating the Palestinian people. Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer.

Al Haq is an independent Palestinian humanitarian organization, based in Ramallah in the West Bank. It monitors and documents human rights violations by all parties in the Israeli- Palestinian conflict. On Monday the 10th of June Israel’s Ministry of Strategic Affairs, (MSA) claimed it had persuaded European and US banks to close down its international account, even though it doesn’t have any accounts with them. It was one of 30 NGOs to be targeted by the Israeli government with unsubstantiated smears and verbal attacks.

• Lord we pray for those in positions of political leadership that they do not abuse their power by trying to silence human rights defenders. Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The Friends of Sabeel North America, (FOSNA), are taking part in a joint action to counter Christian Zionism in Washington DC on the 7th and 8th of July. They aim to bring to light the influence of Christians United for Israel, (CUFI). This group has a membership of over 5 million in the US and it is the largest organization driving support for Israel’s oppression of Palestinians. Recently CUFI lobbied the US government to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, for unconstitutional anti-BDS legislation and promotes illegal settlement expansion.

• Dear Lord, we pray for the work of FOSNA and for their deep concern for their brothers and sisters in Israel/Palestine. We pray for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The Kumi Now initiative focuses on the work of Sabeel, based in East Jerusalem. Sabeel is an ecumenical liberation theology movement among Palestinian Christians. The word ‘Sabeel’ is Arabic for ‘the way’ and also ‘a spring of life-giving water’. The movement seeks to deepen the faith of the Christians in Palestine and to raise awareness of their witness and their concerns around the world.

• Lord, we pray for the work of Sabeel and we pray, too, for the holy city of Jerusalem. You see the sufferings and the deprivations of so many in this city. Strengthen, O Lord our God, the hearts of all those who work for justice here and support them with your Holy Spirit. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

At least 13 Palestinians were injured by Israeli forces as they took part in the Great March of Return on Friday, the 21st of June. The forces used live bullets and rubber coated steel ammunition when they shot protestors.

• Lord we pray for those who were injured in protests in Gaza this week. We pray for the lifting of the blockade on Gaza and for the return of the Palestinians to their homeland. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

A ground-breaking Palestinian Oral History Map has been launched online as part of an archive created by the American University of Beirut. The project contains over 1000-hours of oral testimonies from Palestinians who lived through the Nakba, describing everyday life in Palestine before 1948, as well as their experiences of displacement and exile. (http://www.palestinechronicle.com/ground-breaking-palestinian-oral-history-map-launched-video)

·      Lord, we thank you for this imaginative project to help Palestinians to reconnect with their history that has almost been erased from the textbooks they read in school. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

Despite current political instability, the leader of the centre-left Democratic Party in Moldova announced that it will move the country’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. It would be the first European country to do so.

·      Lord, we pray for the city of Jerusalem. It is a city sacred to the people of three faiths and a city that should be shared in peace by them all. It saddens us to hear of countries making political statements to claim the city for the people of one faith and to try to exclude all others. We pray for the peace and tranquillity of Jerusalem. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

On the 10th of June Hassan al-Awewi gave up his hunger strike after 69 days. His health had deteriorated, and the authorities agreed to end his administrative detention.

Hassan is one of nearly five hundred Palestinians out of a total of 5,400 Palestinian prisoners who are currently held under administrative detention, that is imprisonment without charge or trial. Detention orders can be issued for up to six months at a time and renewed indefinitely.

·      Lord, we pray that Hassan’s health will improve now he is receiving medical attention. We pray that international lawmakers will speak out and require that the Israeli state puts an end to the policy of imprisoning Palestinians without charge or trial. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

On Monday, the 10th of June, after a 13-year legal battle, the Israeli Supreme court judged that the historic properties near the Jaffa Gate had been legitimately acquired by foreign intermediaries acting for the Ateret Cohanim settler organisation. This decision almost completely removes the essential Christian presence from the Jaffa Gate area.

·      Dear Lord, we pray that these attempts to further weaken the Christian presence in the land of the Holy One will be halted, and that all faiths are free to worship in their holy places according to international law. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.