Churches and charities oppose annexation of West Bank

Church leaders from the United Reformed Church (URC), Church of Scotland, Quakers in Britain, Methodist Church, Church of England and Catholic Church have called on the UK government to help deter annexation of the West Bank.

A group of UK-based humanitarian, development, human rights and faith organisations have also issued a statement opposing ‘further illegal Israeli annexation of occupied Palestine’. The group includes Christian Aid; the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel, UK and Ireland (EAPPI UK and Ireland); and Quakers in Britain.

Quaker Peace & Social Witness has separately joined with the American Friends Service Committee and Friends Committee on National Legislation to express deep concern.

Church leaders’ statement

“We stand alongside the Holy Land’s Christian leaders, who have warned that the Israeli government’s plan to annex parts of the West Bank after 1 July ‘would bring about the loss of any remaining hope for the success of the peace process’.

“All our Churches are committed to promoting justice and peace for everyone who calls the Holy Land their home. If annexation proceeds, it would gravely undermine international law with serious consequences for the common good of our global society.

“The UK government should do everything in its power to deter annexation. Only a robust response, working alongside others in the international community, can help to prevent this tragedy.

“We remain united in prayer that plans for annexation will be abandoned, allowing for renewed efforts towards a negotiated solution that upholds the human dignity of Palestinians and Israelis alike.”

Signed:

• Derek Estill, Moderator of the General Assembly, United Reformed Church
• Rt Rev Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
• Paul Parker, Recording Clerk, Quakers in Britain
• Rev Dr Jonathan Hustler, Secretary of the Methodist Conference
• Rt Rev Christopher Chessun, Bishop of Southwark, Church of England
• Rt Rev Declan Lang, Bishop of Clifton, Catholic Church

Statement from UK charities

“As a group of UK-based humanitarian, development, human rights and faith organisations working to support the rights and welfare of the Palestinian people, we are gravely concerned by the Israeli Government’s threat to annex more Palestinian land. The UK government has, at times, asserted that annexation ‘could not pass unchallenged’. A reluctance to declare clearly what meaningful steps it will take in response is contributing to a fear of international abandonment felt by Palestinians.”

The statement asks the UK government to ‘Act now, before it is too late’:

“We urge the UK to heed the recent warning of 47 UN human rights experts that annexation ‘would be the crystallisation of an already unjust reality: two peoples living in the same space, ruled by the same state, but with profoundly unequal rights.’ Most importantly, it should listen to the voices of Palestinians – teachers, health workers, farmers, businesspeople, students, school children, and all others – whose lives are already made intolerable by the occupation. For them, annexation may signal that the international community has abandoned its promises of sovereignty and self-determination, and consigned the Palestinian people to a fate of permanent subjugation and systematic racial discrimination.

“Hope is not yet lost, so long as there are those – individuals and states – that are willing to stand up for international law, not just through words but through tangible action. The sustainable peace the UK seeks can be achieved, but only if it is grounded in the application of the equal human rights of everyone. The UK can show that it has not abandoned the Palestinian people by leading its international partners, including the EU, in recommitting to the cause of Palestinian self-determination, and by outlining, clearly and publicly, what actual, meaningful consequences will result if Israel proceeds with its illegal annexation plans. As with other recent examples of annexation, this violation of international law must carry appropriate ramifications.”

The full statement is available on the Quakers in Britain website.