More than 61,000 Palestinians have been reported killed by Israeli assaults in Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Farhan Haq, the United Nations deputy spokesperson, stated that many individuals continue to be killed and injured, often while seeking food along UN convoy routes and militarized distribution points. Shockingly, around 1,500 fatalities have been recorded since May.
Haq also mentioned that a health care worker from the Palestine Red Crescent Society was recently killed in an Israeli airstrike in Khan Yunus, located in southern Gaza. The destruction of crucial infrastructure has left countless individuals buried under the rubble of demolished churches, mosques, residential buildings, hospitals, and schools, all victims of ongoing Israeli attacks.
In response to the humanitarian crisis, the United States has repeatedly vetoed resolutions in the UN Security Council that call for an immediate ceasefire and the provision of humanitarian aid to the besieged Palestinian population.
As a liberation theologian and faith leader committed to peace and justice, I possess a profound awareness of how political entities often exploit religions for their own agendas. Both Jesus’s teachings and Jewish identity have been misappropriated to disguise white supremacy, Anglo-European paternalism, and various forms of violence against marginalized communities, including Palestinians.
In collaboration with Allan Boesak of South Africa, I made a joint statement in February 2024, echoing calls for urgent action as global outrage mounts regarding the situation in Gaza. We urge prophetic individuals to take the following positions:
Firstly, we call for a strong condemnation of the United States diplomatic, economic, military, and financial support given to what has been denoted as the apartheid State of Israel. We demand an immediate halt to all U.S. governmental aid to Israel.
Secondly, we insist on the United States supporting a resolution in the UN Security Council that demands an immediate, unconditional ceasefire from all parties involved in the ongoing Israeli war against Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. This includes a demand for the safe and unconditional release and return of all hostages held by both Hamas and Israel.
Additionally, we advocate for the immediate restoration of funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, which is crucial for providing humanitarian assistance and welfare relief to the displaced Palestinian refugees from Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
We also demand that the United States withdraw its opposition to South Africa’s petition, which accuses the State of Israel of genocide against the Palestinian population in Gaza. Furthermore, it is imperative for the United States to formally recognize Palestine as an independent state and to support its admission as a sovereign state within the United Nations.
As a response to nearly a century of Zionist-inspired and U.S.-funded violence against Palestinians and people of African descent, we demand that the UN establish a diplomatic, security, economic, and cultural presence in Palestine. This presence must work in conjunction with indigenous leaders to fulfill several crucial tasks:
– Supporting the sovereignty, security, restoration, and return of Palestinians to their homes, villages, and neighborhoods.
– Coordinating the safe release, recovery, and return of all persons detained or held hostage by Hamas and Israel.
– Demanding, procuring, and distributing reparations to the independent state of Palestine that corresponds to the monetary value of all aid, weaponry, and diplomatic support provided to Israel by the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and their allies over more than seven decades of oppression and violence.
We also call for the immediate withdrawal of all Israeli military and intelligence personnel from East Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank, and Gaza. To ensure security for Palestinians, we propose that the United Nations supply a security force, with input from the State of Palestine, to protect the civilian population from external violence.
There are further calls for the prosecution of both the United States and Israel in the International Court of Justice for various crimes including mass murder, starvation, land theft, genocide, and other war crimes documented against Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied territories.
The moral imperative for these actions cannot be overstated. As Boesak articulated, the injustices witnessed are not random occurrences; they are the result of systemic and deliberate oppression against vulnerable individuals. We must confront these injustices head-on.
The continuous broadcast of suffering and atrocities depicted in Gaza has deepened my disgust and resolve. I refuse to remain silent while the United States and Israel engage in actions that cause unimaginable pain and grief to our Palestinian siblings. As advocates for love, justice, and peace, we must recognize that financial, military, and diplomatic support for Israel continues to fuel violence and impedes the path to justice.
It is both naive and morally indefensible to expect peace through continued arming and supporting of a regime engaged in violence. Thus, we must forge a path that prioritizes humanity over political agendas and put an end to the horrors afflicting the Palestinian people today.
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