The Israeli families affected are still living in great uncertainty about the fate of loved ones taken hostage by Hamas in Gaza, demonstrating and praying for their safe return. Israeli cities and communities are subject to daily rocket fire from Hamas and other armed groups. Meanwhile, the death toll in Gaza has passed an unimaginable 25,000, a figure that is rising by the day. Almost half of those killed are children. The UN Secretary-General has called Gaza a graveyard for children.
The devastation in Gaza is huge. More than 60 percent of all homes in Gaza are now uninhabitable, as a result of Israeli bombing.. This destruction is unprecedented in global conflicts. Almost all of Gaza’s population has been displaced within the small strip of land. Many fled south when Israel ordered people to evacuate at the beginning of the war. But time and again, it has been established that there are no safe places in Gaza. The bombs are falling everywhere.
Only a fraction of Gaza’s hospitals and health clinics are functioning, and hundreds of medical professionals are among the dead. Electricity, which is essential for medical care, has been cut off since mid-October. At times, telecommunications have been down completely. The ability to care for the more than 60,000 people injured in the bombing is very limited.
We in the international community have been talking about a humanitarian disaster for months now. But we must never become complacent about what this means. The UN reports that the entire population of Gaza, 2.2 million people, is at imminent risk of famine, with nearly a fifth of the population in the extreme phase of immediate starvation.
It is with dismay that we can confirm that the humanitarian aid allowed into Gaza despite this catastrophic situation is totally inadequate. “People in Gaza risk dying of hunger just a few miles from trucks filled with food,” as the head of the UN World Food Programme(WFP) put it the other day. It is in Israel’s hands to prevent a famine in Gaza by allowing humanitarian access.
In December, the UN General Assembly voted by a clear majority in favour of a resolution calling for a humanitarian ceasefire and the unconditional release of the more than 100 people still held hostages by Hamas. Although the resolution is not formally binding, it is impossible for UN Member States to ignore their moral responsibility.
The ceasefire demands repeated around the world by politicians, UN agencies, religious leaders and a growing section of the public must be respected. The killing must stop, the hostages must be released and emergency aid must reach the people of Gaza. Every day that this unspeakable suffering continues is a defeat for humanity.
Christian presence risks disappearing
The war is affecting virtually the entire population of Gaza indiscriminately. As part of the worldwide church, we wish to remind people that in Gaza, there is a small but active Christian presence, one of the oldest Christian communities in the world. Before the current war, Christians numbered somewhere between 700 and 1,000 people. These are people who worshipped in one of Gaza’s three churches and who have been instrumental in civil society’s work in health care, vocational training and culture. Our partner organisations are now warning that the Christian presence is in the process of disappearing from Gaza. Many have been killed in the war, some have managed to escape abroad thanks to dual citizenship. Those who are left have sought shelter on church premises. Some of them work for Act Church of Sweden’s partner organisation, and we are in awe of the work they manage to do while struggling to survive. One of Gaza’s few functioning health clinics receives 400 patients a day, provides maternity care and psychosocial support and distributes hygiene kits. They conduct activities for children to momentarily ease the burden of war, and they provide psychosocial first aid to mothers and their children. But they don’t know how long they can keep going. Of the original staff of around 70 people, the organisation has only managed to locate 27.
Violence escalating in the West Bank
In the shadow of the war in Gaza, violence is escalating in the West Bank. According to the UN, more than 300 people in the West Bank have been killed by the Israeli military or Israeli settlers since the outbreak of war. A quarter of the dead are children.
Since 7 October, at least 16 Palestinian communities have been emptied of their populations as a result of increasingly aggressive violence by Israeli settlers, who are allowed to operate without the intervention of, and sometimes supported by, the Israeli military. When people are forced to leave their communities due to unsustainable living conditions, it can constitute forced displacement. In several of these communities, Act Church of Sweden has supported the local village committees and their efforts to identify the communities’ most important priorities for greater security and development. Together they have built health clinics, started small-scale farming cooperatives and managed to get the authorities to provide lighting for the village’s main street. This work is now falling apart while allowing the settlements to continue to expand.
The level of violence and the intensified occupation in the West Bank is having a major impact on several levels of society. Restrictions on movement are widespread, and it is very difficult for Palestinians to move within the West Bank to get to work, school and healthcare, for example. The economic impact is devastating and in the shadow of the humanitarian disaster in Gaza, poverty is spreading in the West Bank.
Pathways for necessary accountability
The need for accountability in Israel and Palestine has been evident for a long time. With the ongoing war, the wider international community has recognised the necessity to bring perpetrators to justice, to provide redress for victims and their families and to end the impunity that has been allowed to prevail for too long. Legitimate processes of accountability and redress are essential to achieving a just and lasting peace in the long term.
The recent referrals by South Africa to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and by Chile and Mexico to the International Criminal Court (ICC) are examples of such accountability processes that are available to the international community. It is of utmost importance that all Member States stand up for the integrity of the courts and take their responsibility to ensure that the outcome of legal proceedings is respected and implemented. At the same time, we know that legal processes are often lengthy, and it can take several years before any judgement is reached. The civilian population in Israel and Palestine cannot wait that long, so an immediate ceasefire is needed to end the acute suffering. In addition, the international community – after many years of inaction – must now engage seriously and contribute to ensuring that negotiations between the parties to the conflict are initiated. There is no other way to achieve justice, reconciliation and peace.
The statement was published in Swedish on January 22.
Lutheran World Federation statement (15 January)
World Council of Churches statement (30 December)