23 rd of September, 2021

This week’s Kumi online gathering on Tuesday, September 17 th , focused on the Blockade on
Gaza, which was implemented in 2006 and has resulted in a severe deterioration of living
conditions in Gaza. The combination of the blockade and Israeli airstrikes on Gaza have also led
to a shortage of materials necessary for rebuilding homes and other infrastructures such as
clinics, hospitals, and schools. The health system has also been severely strained in the midst of
COVID-19. As of August 2021, only 16 % of Gazan adults have received two vaccines.

God of justice, we pray for the many injustices Gazans face and ask that you would
move people around the world to stand in solidarity with Gaza. We thank you for
the many Gazans who both continue to work to rebuild their communities and
advocate for the end of the blockade. May your spirit sustain and nourish them. We
pray that the oppressive structures that inflict ongoing violence against Gazans
would be dismantled and that the conditions necessary for peace and human
flourishing would take root and grow.
Lord in Your Mercy…Hear our prayer

This week is the World Week of Prayer for Palestine and September 21 st is the World Day of
Prayer for Peace.

Jesus, you taught us: “blessed be the peacemakers for they shall be called children
of God” (Mathew 5:9). We thank you for all those who are praying and acting for
peace both in Palestine and around the world.
Lord, in Your Mercy…Hear our Prayer.

This week Muna and Mohammed El Kurd made the TIME magazine’s “top 100 influential
people of 2021” list. Muna and Mohammed El Kurd are from the community of Sheikh Jarrah
where Palestinian families are being expelled from their homes. In May 2021, the El Kurd’s
began documenting and speaking out against the ongoing expulsion of people in Sheikh Jarrah,
and they gained a large following on social media.

Lord, we thank you for the advocacy of Muna and Mohammed El Kurd and their
bold stand against injustice in Sheikh Jarrah. We pray for justice for the families
who have been expelled from their homes, and for an end to these forced removals.
Lord, in Your Mercy…Hear our Prayer.

Thursday September 16 th was the memorial day for the Sabra & Shatila Massacre, which took
place in Lebanon in 1982, and led to the death of up to 3,500 Palestinian refugees and Lebanese
civilians.

Lord, we remember the victims and their families. We grieve for the dead and those
who lost loved ones during this brutal massacre. We pray for an end to violence and
for an end to the destruction of life everywhere.
Lord, in Your Mercy…Hear our Prayer.

As of September 16 th , administrative detainee Kayed Fasfous has been on hunger strike for 65
days, along with five other detainees, to protest incarceration without trial.  According to the
Palestinian Prisoner Society there are currently 520 administrative detainees.

Lord, we thank you for the strength and courage Kayed and others have shown in
resisting the violation of their rights. We pray that the rights of current detainees
would be respected and for the end of the practice of administrative detention.
Lord, in Your Mercy…Hear our Prayer

On September 13 th , UNRWA ( United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian
Refugees in the Near East) honoured Palestinian Loay Elbasyouni for his work on the NASA
Mars helicopter, which completed its first flight to Mars in April 2021. He was a former student
at an UNRWA school in Gaza.

Lord, we thank you for the inspiration Loay Elbasyouni’s achievements gives to
refugees and children in Gaza. We pray that children in Gaza and around the world
would have equal access to education and that they would be given the support they
need to develop their talents and gifts.
Lord, in Your Mercy…Hear our Prayer.

After the escape of six Palestinian prisoners on September 6 th , some of the relatives of the
escaped prisoners were arrested and family visits were cancelled for prisoners as a form of
collective punishment. Palestinians have responded with solidarity demonstrations, which have
been met with repression from Israeli forces, leading to injuries amongst demonstrators.

God, you proclaim “Liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners” (Isaiah
61:1). We pray for Palestinian political and administrative prisoners who are
deprived of their basic rights according to international law.
Lord, in your Mercy… Hear our Prayer.

September 16th, 2021

The Kumi Now Online gathering focused on the city of Bethlehem on Tuesday, the 14th of September. On the following Tuesday, the Kumi Now community celebrates the International Day of Peace on the 21st of September, by standing together with the Palestinians who live in Gaza. The Israeli blockade of Gaza, first implemented in 2006, was intended to punish Hamas for their victory in the elections. However, the reality is that children, families, and ordinary citizens are most punished by the blockade.

• Lord, we pray for an end to the fifteen-year-long Israeli blockade of Gaza. We pray that the people of Gaza may be released from a cycle of deprivation, violence and despair and allowed to move freely beyond the enclave once again.
  Lord, in your mercy..

Israeli prison authorities started to transfer prisoners affiliated to the Islamic Jihad movement from prisons in southern Israel, after it was revealed that five of the six prisoners who had tunnelled out of Gilboa prison had been members of the group. Palestinian prisoners protested against the relocation and a violent crackdown from the authorities by burning several prison cells.

• Lord, we pray for an urgent international review of the high numbers of Palestinians imprisoned in military prisons in Israel and the harsh conditions they are forced to endure.
  Lord, in your mercy…

Hundreds of Palestinians attended the burial of Raed Jadallah, a Palestinian gardener in his home village of Beit Ur-Tahta, near Ramallah on Wednesday, the 1st of September.  His friend and his fifteen-year-old son had gone to look for him when he failed to return home from work on Tuesday night. They discovered bloodstains and his dead body in a ditch. It appears that Israeli soldiers shot him on the hillside in the dark when he lit a cigarette, but failed to see if he had been hit or needed medical attention.

• Lord, we pray for Raed’s widow and four children as they mourn his loss. We pray that this incident will be fully investigated by the Israeli military and that any unlawful killing will be prosecuted.
  Lord, in your mercy…

Anhar Al-Deek gave birth to a healthy baby boy, named Alaa, just days after the Israeli authorities were pressurised to release her on bail. She is now recuperating from a Caesarean section delivery.

• Lord, we give thanks that Anhar was able to give birth to her son among family and friends and not in the hands of the occupation. We pray that other Palestinian women may be released before long from the dreadful living conditions in Israeli military prisons.
  Lord, in your mercy…

The municipality of Jerusalem voiced its strong opposition to a controversial construction plan for the abandoned Palestinian village of Lifta. The village nestles in the green hills of the city and is one of the over-500 destroyed Palestinian villages in the 1948 Nakba. The Israeli Land Authority is proposing to ignore the global historic significance of the village by destroying it to build 243 luxury housing units and a boutique hotel.

• Lord, we pray that the Palestinian heritage represented in the village of Lifta will be protected from all attempts to obliterate it. We continue to pray for Palestinian refugees who were evicted from their villages and homes and for the implementation of the right of return of all refugees.
  Lord, in your mercy..

Nesreen Qutainah, a primary school teacher from Hebron, has been shortlisted for the Varky Foundation Global Teacher Prize 2021. Nesreen uses play to make learning about science and mathematics more interesting and enjoyable for her pupils. During the Covid pandemic she made and distributed booklets she had designed herself to encourage them to continue engaging with their studies.

• Lord, we give thanks for Nesreen and for all teachers who have made every effort during lockdown to inspire and support their pupils.
  Lord, in your mercy …

• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Ghana and Nigeria.
  Lord, in your mercy…

September 9th, 2021

This week’s Kumi Now online gathering looked at Education Funding and Policy in Israel/ Palestine. Next week’s Kumi Now on Tuesday, the 7th of September, will focus on the city of Bethlehem in the West Bank. The Israeli occupation has stunted the growth of Bethlehem. It is ringed by twenty illegal Israeli settlements, divided by settler-only roads, overshadowed by the separation wall, disfigured by watchtowers, barbed wire and checkpoints. Much of its land has been confiscated and restrictions of movement have curtailed its tourist industry.

• Lord Jesus, your humble birth in Bethlehem reminds us of the need for shelter and care for young families. We pray for the children and families struggling to survive in Bethlehem under the heavy hand of the Israeli occupation.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

A group of Palestinian tour guides have launched some new half-day tours. The tours have been developed earlier this year during the pandemic through a Sabeel project. The first tour, on Saturday, the 4th of September, took 35 tourist guides to different mountains to view Jerusalem from the four points of the compass.

• Lord, we pray that tour guides will plan creative and sustainable ways to rebuild their livelihoods in the Holy Land. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

After international pressure was brought to bear on the Israeli authorities, they decided to release a Palestinian mother from prison. Anhar al-Deek is in her ninth month of pregnancy and had asked the authorities to allow her to give birth outside prison. She was released on a 40-thousand-shekel bail and house arrest in her family home.

• Lord, we pray for the safe confinement of Anhar. We pray that she may be granted time to recover from the birth of her baby and to spend time with her young daughter.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

There are a number of conferences being hosted by Friends of Sabeel/Kairos in different countries during the months of September and October.
Canadian Friends of Sabeel will hold an ecumenical dialogue entitled ‘Whose Land, Whose Promise? Palestine, Justice and the Bible’ on the 18th of September and the 2nd of October.
Kairos Palestine Norway will hold a webinar about the present situation in Palestine on Sunday, the 19th of September at 6pm Palestine time.
Friends of Sabeel, Germany will show ‘The People’s Patriarch’ about Patriarch Emeritus Michel Sabbah, on Friday, the 24th of September at 6pm.
The U.K. Friends of Sabeel Conference takes place on Saturday, the 25th of September from 10:30-1pm. The main speaker is Jonathan Kuttab, Christian International Human Rights Lawyer and executive director of Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA). Meeting Registration – Zoom

• Lord, our God, it is you who lights our lamp and lightens our darkness, (Psalm18:28). We pray that the words spoken at these Sabeel/ Kairos conferences around the world will shed the light of truth on the dark situation for Palestinians living under the Israeli occupation.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Fourteen members of the Palestinian Authority security forces will be charged for allegedly beating to death, opposition figure Nizar Banat in late June.
Nizar Banat was abducted from his cousin’s house on the 24th of June by members of the Palestinian security apparatus, who had beaten him severely. On his arrival at the hospital in Hebron, twenty minutes later, he was pronounced dead.

• Lord, we pray for the widow of Nizar and his five children as they mourn his loss. We pray that the Palestinian Authority will thoroughly investigate any wrongful abduction or unlawful violence which their representatives may have carried out against Nizar.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Friday, the 3rd of September, Israeli soldiers arrested seven Palestinians in the Ramallah area. Three brothers in the village of Rantis, northwest Ramallah were among those who were arrested. According to Addameer, the Prisoner Support and Human Rights Organisation more than 800,000 Palestinians have been arrested under Israeli military orders in the occupied Palestinian Territories since 1967, (about 20% of the Palestinian population).

• Lord, we pray for an end to the new wave of Israeli arrests being carried out on the Palestinian population to crush their resistance. We pray for an end to the occupation and for the establishment of justice for all the people of the land.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers

• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Wave of Prayer
2nd September 2021

This week’s Kumi Now online gathering focused on how different Palestinian artists express their non-violent resistance to the Israeli occupation. Next week’s Kumi Now on Tuesday, the 7th of September will consider Education Funding and Policy in Palestine/Israel. Israel runs a separate and unequal school system for Jewish Israeli pupils and for Palestinians. While all Israeli schools receive tax support, the government schools for Israel’s Christians, Muslims, and Druze receive a lower subsidy than the Jewish schools. The Israeli government has also made drastic reductions to subsidies to non-Jewish private schools in the last decade.

• Lord, we pray that the Israeli government will be challenged over its inequitable funding of schools. We pray that every school pupil in Palestine/Israel would be given the opportunity to achieve their potential, no matter their religion or ethnicity.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Nadia Habash has been elected as the first female union leader in Palestine. She will head up the Palestinian Engineers’ Union. She has taught architecture as a professor at Birzeit University and set up an award-winning practice, Habash Consulting Engineers, with her brother in 1998.

• Lord, we give thanks for the outstanding gifts of Nadia Habash and recognise her courage and sense of duty to serve as a union leader in a male dominated profession.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Iyad Shalabi is deaf and has been a wheelchair user since the age of thirteen and yet he has overcome his disabilities to win a medal at the Tokyo Paralympics. On Wednesday, the 25th of August, he became the first Arab Israeli to be awarded a gold medal at the Paralympics, winning the 100-metre backstroke final.

• Lord, we give thanks for the determination of Iyad to overcome his disabilities and to compete successfully in the Paralympics. We pray that he will inspire other young people facing physical challenges to persevere and improve their strength and fitness.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

The village of Tabgha lies on the shores of Lake Galilee. Tradition holds that this is the site where Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes. There is a monastery at this site which is run by German Benedictines. On Wednesday, the 18th of August, vandals removed a wrought iron cross which was anchored to an outdoor stone altar on the same site.

• Lord Jesus, we pray for those seeking to tear down the symbols that others hold dear. We ask Lord that you would guide them on the path of love and respect for the faith of other people.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

A protest tent was set up in the Sarona Market in Tel Aviv from Wednesday, the 25th of August until Friday, the 27th of August. The protest organisers were calling on the Israeli public to recognise the abuse faced by Palestinians from settlers and Israeli soldiers who are trying to force them from their land.

• Lord, we pray that more and more people in Israel and around the world will see that the Palestinians suffer oppression under the Israeli occupation. We pray that many will have the courage to challenge the Israeli government over its apartheid policies.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Ahmed Salima, a young Palestinian from East Jerusalem, had just finished his shift at a restaurant in Jerusalem’s Mahane Yehuda market when he was attacked on the night of Thursday, the 19th of August. A group of five young Israelis set upon him and stabbed him.
He was taken to hospital with multiple stab wounds.

• Lord, we pray for Ahmed’s full recovery from this brutal attack. We pray that his assailants will be brought to justice. We pray for a halt to the frequent outbreaks of inter-racial violence and hatred breaking out across Israel/ Palestine.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers.

The new school year for students in the West Bank and Gaza started in August and for schools in occupied East Jerusalem and Israel, schools started on 1st September

• Lord, we pray that young Palestinian students will begin and persist with their studies, even though many face disruption and turmoil caused by the Israeli occupation and Covid-19.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Cape Verde, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, and Senegal.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

This week’s Kumi Now online gathering will focus on how Christian Zionism affects every-day life in Palestine.

Next week’s Kumi Now on Tuesday, the 31st of August, will look at how Palestinian artists express their non-violent resistance to the Israeli occupation.

•    Lord, we pray that Palestinian artists will continue to use their creative gifts to find ways of engaging with the humanity of those who seek to oppress them.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

More than 2,000 people had to be evacuated from their homes when wildfires took hold of the wooded hills near Jerusalem on Sunday, the 15th of August. The Israeli fire brigade were joined by Palestinian firefighters and the Israeli Air Force to battle the flames and douse them with flame retardant. The fires were brought under control after burning for three days.

•    Lord, we are thankful that these wildfires near Jerusalem did not cause any reported serious injuries or loss of life. We thank you for the courage of the firefighters and pray for those who have lost their homes and livelihoods. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The Israeli authorities introduced new restrictions to curb Covid transmission on Wednesday, the 18th of August, after the highest daily infection numbers were reported since the start of the year. The new Delta variant has also caused infections to rise among Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, with several hundred cases of infection reported every day.

•    Lord, we continue to pray for all those suffering from Covid-19. We pray too for those who are denied access to vaccines, due to lack of financial resources. We pray that the Israeli government will step up to its international responsibilities as an occupying power to provide rapid and equitable access to vaccines for Palestinians.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

On Monday, the 16th of August, four Palestinians were killed and a fifth was seriously injured when undercover Israeli soldiers attempted to detain a suspected militant. The incident took place in Jenin, in the northern West Bank, where tensions have been high after a Palestinian was killed by Israeli soldiers earlier in the month. There have been at least eight violent clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinians in the past two months.

•    Lord, we pray for your restraining hand over the serious spiral of violence now rife in the Occupied Territories. We pray for an end to the Israeli military occupation that is the main source of violence.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

According to Israel’s Peace Now organization, the Israeli government is set to start planning a new illegal settlement on the site of the former airport at Atarot, East Jerusalem. If the plan is accepted, in early December, it would deal a blow to any hopes for a two state solution as it would deny Palestine a capital in East Jerusalem. The plan to build a 9,000 housing unit settlement would effectively sever links between the Palestinian communities in Ramallah and East Jerusalem.

•    Lord, we pray that international governments and human rights’ organizations would speak out against this new Israeli plan to  further divide and contain Palestinian communities and surround them with yet another massive illegal settlement.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

For the life of Roni Rock- the child entertainer from Nazareth – who died recently.

•    Lord, we give thanks for the life of Roni Rock who died recently. We thank you for the way he dedicated his life to writing songs and performing shows to bring joy and laughter into the lives of Palestinian children.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The Yabous Cultural Centre hosted the Jerusalem Music Festival on Wednesday, the 11th of August. Palestinian musicians from different parts of the country came together to perform their music in a wide variety of styles.

•    We thank you, Lord, for the skills of musicians who can make melodies and gladden hearts, even when our hearts are heavy and downcast.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

•    We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

This week’s Kumi Now online gathering on Tuesday, the 17th of August, looked at the role of the US in Palestine.
Next week’s gathering will look at how Palestinians address the threat of Christian Zionism. Christian Zionists support Zionism as a national movement for the return of the Jewish people to Palestine and the sovereignty of the Jews over the whole land.

• Lord Jesus, our Rock and our Redeemer, we pray for our Palestinian people who face the scorn and abuse of those desiring to force them from their land. We pray that you will remember the indigenous Palestinian people of the land.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Wednesday, the 11th of August, the Defence Minister, Benny Gantz, approved the construction of 863 Palestinian homes in Israeli controlled Area C, mostly in Jenin and Bethlehem. At the same time the Israeli Civil Administration agreed to the construction of more than 2200 new homes for illegal Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.

• Lord, we pray for a halt to the rapid expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories. We are saddened that our legal rights for building permits is linked to illegal settlement building on our lands.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Since the beginning of the year the Israeli authorities have raided and destroyed eleven printing presses, media offices and bookstores belonging to Palestinians. In May four bookstores and four printing presses were destroyed in Gaza. In Ramallah, the Bisan printing press has been ordered to close for six months, while other presses were destroyed in Bethlehem and Izzariyeh.

• Lord, we pray that all attempts to stifle the freedom of expression of Palestinians will be frustrated.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

A Jerusalem court issued a ruling on Wednesday, the 11th of August, that the demolition orders on hundreds of Palestinian homes in the Silwan neighbourhood of occupied East Jerusalem should be frozen until February 2022. However the demolition of sixteen Palestinian homes was ordered immediately. Israeli authorities claim the homes have been built without permits. The permits are rarely granted to Palestinians and the Israeli authorities plan to move illegal Israeli settlers into the area under heavily armed protection and allow the creation of a public park devoted to King David.

• Lord, we pray for the Palestinian families in Silwan who now have to demolish their own homes to avoid extreme demolition charges from the Israeli authorities. We pray that international organisations will challenge the Israeli government over their policies of home demolitions and the denial of building permits to Palestinians.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Saturday, the 7th of August, Adalah,(The Legal Centre for Arab Minority Rights), wrote to the Israeli Attorney General to seek urgent clarification over recent measures taken by Israeli municipalities to block access to Palestinians to open spaces under the guise of Covid 19 protection. The municipalities of Acre, Netanya and Hadera took measures to prevent Palestinians from visiting beaches and parks, whether or not they had valid permits or had been vaccinated.

• Lord, we pray that the Israeli authorities will draw back from introducing apartheid measures in their communities. We pray that any further unauthorised prohibition of movement on racist grounds will be stopped. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

There has been an increase in the number of patients suffering from serious coronavirus infections in Israel. The government is forecasting a possible increase in the number of patients requiring hospital care to five thousand by the second week of September. They have funded new healthcare provision and have reintroduced restrictions on entry to venues and limitations on large gatherings.

• Lord, we continue to pray for the end of the suffering caused by the Covid pandemic. We pray that wealthier countries will distribute vaccines more equitably, so that all peoples can develop immunity.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

The 9th of August was celebrated as the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. The Kumi Now Online gathering on Tuesday, the 10th of August considered how indigenous people, including Palestinians, struggle for their rights.
On Tuesday 17th August, Kumi Now looks forward to remembering the World Humanitarian Day.The gathering will consider the US humanitarian support for Palestinians, which has been cut drastically in recent years.

· ‘Lord, we pray for Palestinian refugees and the people of Gaza. May their needs always be provided. We pray for the hungry, the homeless, the unemployed, the sick of Palestine.May the last be the first and the first be last. We pray for our leaders who have it in their power to alleviate suffering, that they may be led along the path of justice. Soften their hearts and let them be moved by your grace.’(Churches for Middle East Peace)
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On the 3rd of August, Dar al-Kalima in Bethlehem received full accreditation as a university. It was first established as a Community College in 2006. It now has five colleges and is authorised to grant all academic degrees.

· We thank you, Lord, for the hard work and dedication of the staff at the Dar al-Kalima University. We pray that the teachers will continue to inspire and support their students to help them achieve their full potential, even under the repressive conditions of the Israeli occupation.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Layan Nasir, a young student at Birzeit University, was arrested by the Israeli authorities on the 7th of July. She had taken part in protests over the death in detention of the activist Nizar Banat. She is one of seventy four students from Birzeit who have recently been detained and imprisoned by the Israeli authorities.

· Lord, we pray that Layan and other Palestinian students will be released from prison. We pray that international pressure will be brought to bear on the Israeli government to stop the arbitrary arrests and imprisonment of Palestinian students.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Canadian Friends of Sabeel are raising money with a summertime initiative asking people to walk for Palestine. There are three different routes to choose. ‘Each route is based on a walking route in the Holy Land with extra kilometres to factor in the reality of checkpoints that Palestinians must deal with on their daily commute.’

· Lord, we thank you for this Canadian fundraising initiative and pray that many would be interested in following the walking routes and many others would join in and find out about life for Palestinians under the Israeli occupation.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

The Israeli Supreme Court has deferred its verdict on the expulsion of Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah in occupied East Jerusalem. It refused to rule on the status of the ownership of the land. Instead it put pressure on the Palestinians to accept the status of ‘protected residents’. Under this status they would be allowed to stay in their homes for three generations, if they paid rent to the Israeli settler organisation Nahalat Shimon.

· Lord, we pray that voices around the world will demand that the Israeli government calls a halt to the relentless lawsuits brought by Israeli settler organisations to force Palestinians out of their homes in East Jerusalem.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

An Israeli film, entitled ‘Ahed’s Knee’, won the Jury Prize at this summer’s Cannes Film Festival. The film is based on the experiences of Nadav Lapid making a documentary about Ahed, a young Palestinian woman activist. The Israeli director described his film as, ‘full of pain and sadness about a country that should have been different, that could have been different.’

· Thank you, Lord, that creative artists in Israel/Palestine are prepared to speak the truth about the apartheid conditions in their land. We pray for protection for them as they often face deceitful scheming and intimidation. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

In June, nearly 85,000 young Palestinian students in all the governates across the Occupied Territories sat the Tawjihi High School examinations. On Tuesday, the 3rd of August, 71% of the students celebrated their successful results.

· Lord, we thank you for the commitment of so many young Palestinians to their studies, despite the disruptions of the pandemic and the economic and social instability in the West Bank and Gaza. We pray for resilience and a steadfast spirit to help these young people as they seek work or further education.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

· We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of the Cameroon, Central African Republic, and Equatorial Guinea.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

The Kumi Now online gathering on Tuesday, the 3rd of August, considered how Israeli forces are breaking the Fourth Geneva Convention by using collective punishment against the Palestinian population.
The theme of Kumi Now the following week will be the celebration of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People on the 9th of August. The experiences of the Palestinian people after the Nakba with their forced exile, the denial of their history and attempts to erase their culture connects them to the experiences of many other indigenous groups across the world.

• Thank you, Lord, for the rich diversity of races and cultures around the world. Help us to respect one another and to live in a spirit of peace and co-operation. Stren
gthen us with power through your Holy Spirit to support those indigenous groups who are suffering oppression. Lord, in your mercy.. hear our prayers.

The Sabeel Online Service takes place each week on Thursdays at 6pm, Jerusalem Time.
Rev Naim Ateek leads us in prayer and reflections on Bible readings and people from different countries respond with contributions on how to help support Palestinians living under the Israeli occupation.

• Lord Jesus, let the light of your love shine in our hearts. We pray that you will ‘bring forth your righteousness as the light and your justice as the noonday’,(Ps37:6) in the Holy Land.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Last week Muslim families gathered across Palestine to celebrate Eid al-Adha by sharing meals and exchanging gifts. Some families celebrated at the beach and, sadly, five Palestinians were drowned while swimming.

• Lord, we pray for those Muslim families whose celebrations turned to mourning, and who now grieve for their drowned relatives.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Mohammed al-Alami, a twelve-year-old Palestinian boy, was shot in the chest by Israeli soldiers while he was travelling in a car with his father and sisters. It has been announced that he has since died of his injuries in Beit Omar. Israeli occupation forces have launched an investigation into the shooting, however, it is unlikely that any soldiers will face repercussions.

• Lord, we pray for the traumatised al-Alami family grieving for their son, Mohammed, who has died so young. We pray that this incident will be properly investigated and that those responsible will be prosecuted.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

The headquarters of Defence for Children International-Palestine (DCIP), in Ramallah was broken into by the Israeli border police at around 5am on Thursday, the 29th of July. The police took computer equipment from the office as well as files on the child detainees being defended by the charity in the Israeli military court system.

• Lord, we give thanks for the work of those who defend the human rights of Palestinian children caught up in the terrifying Israeli military court system.
We pray there will be an international outcry over the attack on the work of Palestinian human rights activists. We pray that the Israeli government will be held to account for the way they break international law by the violation of the rights of Palestinian children.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Saturday, the 24th of July, the Palestinian Human Rights organisation, Al-Haq, submitted an urgent appeal to the United Nations Special Procedures over the arbitrary detention of Shana Odeh Abu Fannouneh. Odeh was detained by the Israeli army on Wednesday, the 7th of July. Al-Haq has drawn attention to the Israeli policy of trying to silence Palestinians who have been working in the health services. Odeh has been particularly involved with providing health services to all Palestinian communities across the West Bank during the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Lord, we pray for an end to the intimidation and arbitrary arrests of Palestinian health service workers. We pray especially for the early release of Odeh from detention and that she can resume her work to support Palestinian communities.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Israeli soldiers seized equipment and cables from technicians working in the Simya area, south of Hebron on Sunday, the 25th of July. The equipment had been funded by the Danish government through the European Union to help restore electricity to 2,500 residents in the area. These residents live in Area C of the occupied West Bank, which is under full Israeli military control.

• Lord, we pray that the EU and other international organisations will put pressure on the Israeli government to return the stolen equipment and allow the restoration of electrical services to residents in the Simya area.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Thursday, the 29th of July, the Israeli settlement watch organisation, Peace Now, stated that the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture has given millions of shekels to settler associations to fund volunteers to do farm work at illegal outposts in the West Bank. It has also agreed to allocate large swathes of land for illegal settlers to use as grazing, even though the settlers have not received permits to build outposts.

• Lord, we pray for an end to the illegal annexation of Palestinian land and a halt to the way public funds are being used to support illegal Israeli settler association activities in the occupied West Bank.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of the Republic of Congo, Gabon, São Tomé and Príncipe.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Sabeel Wave of Prayer
29.7.21

This week’s Kumi Now online gathering considered the Israeli policy of obstructing Palestinian family unification.

Next week’s Kumi Now reflects on the Israeli policy of collective punishment meted out to Palestinian communities and defended on security grounds. Punitive home demolitions, forcible transfers, night raids and the blockade of Gaza are just some of the tactics employed by the Israeli authorities. Studies have shown repeatedly that those who suffer the most under these punitive measures are Palestinian women and their children.

• Lord, we pray that Israel would start to honor its international legal obligations and abandon collective punishment as a way to pressurize and oppress Palestinians. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

On Monday, the 19th of July, the United Church of Christ adopted the ‘Declaration on the Requirements for a Just Peace between Palestine and Israel’ by an overwhelming majority. The declaration comes in response to Kairos Palestine’s ‘Cry for Hope’ call to churches around the world. It critiques Israeli apartheid laws which discriminate against Palestinians, while clearly differentiating between criticism of Israel and antisemitism.

• Lord Jesus, our good shepherd, guide your church along a path of righteousness for your name’s sake. Help us to continue to pray and work for justice and peace for all those experiencing racism and oppression in Palestine/Israel. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

Friends of Sabeel North America,(FOSNA) announced on Thursday, the 22nd of July that they have appointed Jonathan Kuttab as their new Executive Director. Jonathan is an eminent Palestinian human rights lawyer. He lives in Pennsylvania, but is also a resident of East Jerusalem where he maintains a law practice. He founded a number of human rights organizations, including Al Haq and Non-violence International. He has served on the board of Sabeel for many years. He is looking forward to working closely with Sabeel Jerusalem/Nazareth, as well as among Palestinian solidarity groups and churches in the US.

• Lord, we give thanks for Jonathan Kuttab and his new role at FOSNA. We pray that you would give him your wisdom and understanding as he steps into his position and continues to follow his commitment to help establish a just peace in the Holy Land. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

Noura Erakat, an American human rights lawyer and academic and Samora Pinderhughes, a composer, have co-founded a campaign under the title of Liberation Studio. They are encouraging visual artists and musicians to raise funds for American Near East Refugee Aid, (Anera). They hope to raise funds for those Palestinian refugees recently affected by the conflict.

• Lord, we give thanks for the way artists around the world are using their creative gifts to help vulnerable refugee communities in the occupied Palestinian Territories and Gaza. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The chairman of the Palestinian Football Association, Jibril Rajoub, raised an objection to a friendly match being held in occupied East Jerusalem between FC Barcelona and the Israeli Bitar Jerusalem FC. He told FIFA that the match would be played in the Malha district of the Old City, which was the site of a pre-1948 Palestinian village. The Israeli owner of Bitar, Moshe Hogeg was not prepared to hold the match at any other venue and so the match has been cancelled.

• Lord, we give thanks that there is a growing awareness among some international sports teams of how the Palestinians are struggling to survive living under the Israeli occupation. Lord, in your mercy …hear our prayer.

Ben and Jerry’s Ice-cream announced on Monday, the 19th of July, that it will no longer sell ice-cream in the occupied Palestinian Territories, claiming the sales there as ‘inconsistent with our values’. The rebuke from an internationally recognized brand will bring into focus the illegality of Israel’s rapidly expanding settlements across the West Bank.

• Lord, we pray that the announcement will encourage other companies to review whether their business sales in the occupied Palestinian Territories are making them complicit with the Israeli occupation and further violating the human rights of the Palestinians. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

On Sunday, the 18th of July, Abdo, a forty-three-year old Palestinian from Shufa’at refugee camp in East Jerusalem was detained by the Israeli authorities for a traffic violation. On the evening of Wednesday, the 21st of July, his family were informed that he had died of a heart attack in his cell in the Al-Maskobiya detention centre. There have been many reports of torture and physical abuse suffered by Palestinian detainees under interrogation at this centre.

• Lord, we join with Abdo’s family as they grieve his loss, praying especially for his pregnant wife and their four children. We pray that any abuse or brutality perpetrated on Abdo by the authorities will be thoroughly investigated and that any offender will be prosecuted. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

Israeli authorities are refusing to grant the Palestinian water authorities the licenses they need to improve access to water for those living in Area C, which is subject to Israeli security control. There are severe water shortages for Palestinians living in this area, although illegal Israeli settlers living here experience no lack.

• Lord, we pray for the Palestinian people who are experiencing water shortages in the high summer temperatures. How hard must it be for some Palestinian villagers to wait for weeks for a water tanker to deliver water, when they see Israeli settlers nearby filling up their swimming pools and watering their gardens?  Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

There has been a dramatic increase in the number of Palestinians who have been displaced from their homes in the West Bank. The number is up by 70% in 2021 compared to the previous year, according to the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs. On Wednesday, the 14th of July, thirteen Bedouin families from Ras al Tin lost their homes and animal shelters when they were confiscated by the Israeli authorities. On the following day in Humsa Al Bqai’a in the northern Jordan Valley a family of eight were forced to leave their temporary shelter. They had been dispossessed of their home the previous week during a mass demolition carried out by the Israeli authorities after they declared the area a new military firing zone.

• Lord, we pray for an end to the home demolition policy of the Israeli government. We pray that international lawmakers will put pressure on Israel to recognize the inhumanity and illegality of this policy. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

This week’s Kumi Now online gathering focused on the Israeli apartheid wall. On the 20th of July, 2004, the UN passed a resolution declaring the illegality of Israel’s separation wall under international law. Israel has used the wall, settlements and military zones to prohibit Palestinians access to 60% of land in the West Bank.
Next week’s Kumi Now will explore the issue of family unification, a right denied to many Palestinians and causing great heartache and suffering.

• Lord of compassion and mercy, we pray for those Palestinians who are cut off from their land by the wall and those cut off from their families by racist laws. We pray for a spirit of hope to fill the hearts of all those suffering under the Israeli occupation.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Thursday, the 8th of July, the Israeli Civil Administration handed out a demolition order against the cemetery in the village of al-Deirat, east of Yatta in south Hebron. The villagers are mainly dependent on agriculture and livestock rearing and have been subjected to land theft from two nearby Israeli settlements, as well as the construction of a by-pass road and military installations.

• Lord, we pray for the villagers in al-Deirat as they see the land of their village cemetery annexed by the Israeli authorities. We pray that international lawmakers will openly challenge the Israeli government’s theft of occupied land.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

600 academics and artists from more than 45 countries recently signed a petition calling for the immediate end to the Israeli apartheid regime and to the occupation of Palestine. The petition calls for a democratic constitution that ensures equal rights and an end to discrimination based on race, ethnic origin or religion.

• Lord, we thank you that voices around the world are crying out for change in Israel. We long to see the human rights of all those living in Palestine/ Israel fully respected.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Sunday, the 11th of July, the Israeli Cabinet approved the deduction of 597 million shekels from the tax revenue it collects for the Palestinian Authority,(PA). This sum is equivalent to the sum paid to families of Palestinian prisoners and families of those killed by Israeli forces. The deduction will increase the burden on the PA to cover public sector wages.

• Lord, the Israeli occupation comes at such a high cost to the Palestinian economy. We remember the families who are struggling with poverty, unemployment and sickness.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

On Sunday, 18th July, a number of Muslim worshippers were injured by Israeli occupation forces as they prayed at the Al Aqsa Mosque to celebrate Eid al-Adha. Israeli authorities had allowed a big number of Jews to enter the compound to pray as they commemorated Tisha B’av, with armed guards, something which is normally forbidden during the Eid celebrations.

· Lord, we pray for peace and order in the city of Jerusalem. We pray that the occupying Israeli authorities would respect the agreed upon rules for visiting Al Aqsa Mosque.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.

The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, (PCBS), reported on Tuesday, the 13th of July, that the unemployment rate among Palestinian university graduates reached 54%in 2020,(35% in the West Bank;78% in Gaza). Most graduates between the ages of 20-29years have to search for their first job for a period of 10 months to two years.

· Lord, we thank you for the determination of many young Palestinians to pursue higher education and employment despite the difficulties they face. We pray for them that they may be resourceful and steadfast even as the pandemic has reduced the availability of work.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Dr Cornel West, a prominent American philosopher and activist, resigned as a professor at Harvard Divinity School after four years of teaching there. On Monday, the 12th of July, he published his resignation letter on social media. It cited his support of Palestine as one of the reasons the university denied him tenure. He will be rejoining the faculty of the Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where he first taught 44 years ago.

• Lord Jesus you told us that ‘whatever is said in the dark shall be heard in the light’ (Luke12:3). We thank you for prophetic voices ready to speak out clearly about injustice, even at personal cost. We pray for academics like Dr West who pay a heavy price for holding the powerful to account.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

The United Reform Church, (URC) passed significant resolutions about the situation in Israel/ Palestine at their General Assembly, (9th-12th July). They voiced their concern over the ‘de facto’ annexation of the occupied Palestinian Territories, the expansion of the settlements and home demolitions. They have asked local churches to refrain from purchasing products made in Israeli settlements and are reviewing their investments in companies profiting from them.

• Lord, we see these URC resolutions as an encouragement and take them as a reminder that ‘the Palestinians are not forgotten’, as Rev Dr Munther Isaac commented.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

Esther Bejarano died on Saturday, the 10th of July, at the age of 96 years. She was one of the last survivors of the Auschwitz women’s orchestra. After 1945 she went to live in Israel for over a decade, before returning to live in her native Germany. Both she and her husband actively supported the BDS movement. She stated that they found life in Israel had been difficult ‘because we did not agree with the terrible things that were done to the Palestinians’.

• Lord, we give thanks for the long life and witness of Esther Bejarano. We thank you that she was prepared to speak out about injustice and inhumanity wherever she encountered it.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.

• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Djibouti and Somalia.
Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.