The City of Peace is at the Breaking Point
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- Published on Wednesday, 26 November 2014 12:22
- Written by editor
Action Alert
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict is NOT a Religious Struggle
To end this conflict, Israel must end injustice.
s23,
The violence and tension in Jerusalem have hit a breaking point. Commenters and politicians would have us believe it’s an intractable conflict between religious extremists, but a look behind the headlines makes it clear the violence is a matter of politics not faith, of land not God, of resources not ideologies. It’s about injustice, not religion.
As Muslims, Christians, and Jews, we stand together against the Israeli policies that have brought Jerusalem to the brink. Join us in telling Secretary of State John Kerry that peace will only come to a Jerusalem where all people are free and equal.
We have been watching what is taking place in Jerusalem with increasing grief and concern. The tragic murders of Jews at prayer, the shooting of a 10-year-old boy on the Gaza border and the possible lynching of a Palestinian Jerusalemite have occurred in the context of an expanding system of Israeli control and oppression. All this is on top of the failure of the faulty Kerry “peace “ plan, constant land confiscation, and the Israeli assault on Gaza this summer.
Today East Jerusalem and West Bank neighborhoods are seeing new levels of settler violence and army presence including midnight raids into people’s homes and wide scale arrests, including of Palestinian children. High-ranking Israeli officials proclaiming Israeli sovereignty over Haram al-Sharif (also known as the Temple Mount or Noble Sanctuary) have provoked violence in the holy city of Jerusalem that is likely to spread across Israel and Palestine.
As decades-old unjust policies worsen by the day, so does the violence and tension in Jerusalem. The answer is clear: end the injustice. Prime Minister Netanyahu would have us believe that this is an intractable religious struggle. But the truth is that what is at issue is securing equal rights for all and political sovereignty for Palestine and Israel.
The Israeli/Palestinian conflict is a political struggle and needs a political solution: period. Let’s tell John Kerry not to pass the buck.
A solution to the violence must be based on international law and equal human rights for Palestinians and Israeli citizens as the starting point if we are to end this protracted political struggle.
Together, let us pray and take action for the peace of Jerusalem. Join us in signing the petition to Mr. Kerry urging him to focus on a just political solution NOW.
Sincerely,
Don Wagner, FOSNA
Dr. Hatem Bazian, AMP
Rabbi Alissa Wise, JVP
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