Israeli settler presence in the West Bank Christian community of Taybeh is constant, contributes to significant insecurity
Father Bashar Fawadleh, Latin Parish priest, sounds the alarm for Taybeh, the last remaining Christian village in the West Bank. He wants the world to know that the children in the village, located near Ramallah, are terrified by settler violence and harassment. Earlier this month, the Israeli military closed Taybeh to non-residents, citing the violence by settlers.
“Children who attend schools in Ramallah have to travel on unsafe roads where they encounter the settlers…. including for children who come to our schools from outside the village,” says Fawadleh. “There are no guarantees for children’s safety on the roads.”
Taybeh is a significant location for Christians. Its archaeology dates back to the Roman era and the early Christian period. Once a place where Palestinian Christians lived peaceably with their neighbours, Taybeh is now surrounded by four Israeli settlements—Ofra and Amona at the west, and Rimonim and Kokav Hashahar at the East—in addition to settler outposts in all directions. Under international law, all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory are illegal, whether they are “outposts” or settlements established with Israeli government support.
Children watch as their families are terrorized by Israeli settlers, who attack and commit acts of arson, including a fire that damaged the Church of Saint George, a 1,500-year-old church. In addition to shootings and destroying olive trees, settlers ride through properties of Christian families on all-terrain vehicles, shouting at and harassing the residents. Children are especially frightened during these attacks.
While diplomatic visits to the village—there have been over 50 in the past year—are welcome, “they are not enough,” says Fawadleh.
What You Can Do
Please go to our Take Action webpage to call on churches and on Canada to support just peace in Palestine and Israel.
This Prayer for the Peoples of the Middle East invites our community to pray and act for an end to war, so that God’s peace and justice may flourish for all of God’s Creation.
Join a global campaign entitled From Condemnation to Consequences calling on states, including Canada, to hold Israel meaningfully accountable for its ongoing illegal occupation of Palestine.
The United Church of Canada is a signatory to the Arms Embargo Now campaign. Join the campaign action to halt Elbit Systems, a major Israeli arms manufacturer that equips the Israeli Occupation Forces, from producing and selling arms in collaboration with Canadian companies—see this toolbox for helpful resources. More than 1,000 emails have already been sent to CEOs of over 40 Elbit suppliers to keep the pressure up! United Church communities nationwide are invited to join in the effort.