Solidarity With the Burnat Family
By Rev. Chad Collins
Many of you know my friend and brother Iyad Burnat and his family. Some of you may have visited him in his village of Bil’in, about 8 miles outside of Ramallah. Others of you have heard him speak or read his book, Bil’in and the Non Violent Resistance. You also may have seen his brother Emad’s Oscar Nominated Documentary, 5 Broken Cameras.
Iyad is an internationally known nonviolent activist. He and his family are pillars of their community. Since the formation of the Popular Committee Against the Wall in 2004, Iyad has led the village of Bil’in and several international peace activists, including Bishop Desmond Tutu, in protests every single Friday against the building of the apartheid wall and Israel’s theft of Bil’in’s farmland for the building of illegal settlements.
As an Apartheid regime, Israel’s government not only systematically oppresses Palestinians (in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank) by “legally” discriminating against them because they are not Jewish (with different sets of laws and different court systems) but also terrorizes any Palestinans who resist such injust and inhumane treatment. By strategically making use of night raids, random administrative detentions, the imprisonment of children, torture, and violence, Israel tries to intimidate our sisters and brothers from resisting; silence their prophetic voice; and weaken the strength of their sumud (or “steadfastness”).
As you may imagine, because they have been on the front lines of this resistance, Iyad and his family have suffered and are still suffering greatly. In Iyad’s own words:
This has been my life since childhood and this is how my children have grown up. We do not know how to give up. Since the beginning, the Occupation has been persecuting us and assaulting us. I have been imprisoned several times and wounded. The contents of my house have been repeatedly destroyed. The Israeli Occupation Forces have assaulted my wife and children several times.
A spiteful Occupation soldier shot my first born son Majd in his leg, which led to complete paralysis of his foot.
Abdel-Khaleq, my second son, was shot in the head and during his treatment, he was arrested for two weeks. Shortly after his release, he was re-arrested to spend 13 months in prison and soon after that release he was detained for 60 days and tortured in the most difficult prison in the world, the Al-Maskubiya. He was then released but came out of this criminal investigation with a permanent backache because his torture on “The Ghost.” To this day his head is constantly in pain because of his injuries. He was detained again last week at a mobile checkpoint and transferred to Ramleh Prison. Up to this moment, we do not know what the charge is.
As for my third son, Muhammad, he was wounded in the chest and hand and was arrested several times. For the past fifteen months and counting, he has been confined to prison without trial.
Several other cousins and friends from Bil’in are also confined to prison without charge and trial.
Since 2004, we have resisted nonviolently against Israel’s wall and settlements. The boys’ arrest is the price we are paying for this resistance. Our community in Bil’in needs your urgent solidarity and support. Archbishop Desmond Tutu once famously said, “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” It is high time injustice is ended! With your help and your solidarity, we can continue to stand firm.
We all know that Iyad and his family are not alone in this unjust treatment and that every Palestinian family faces great injustices every day. But as things are getting harder and harder for my friend and brother Iyad, I write to ask for your solidarity in prayer, and as the Spirit leads you to act, please follow your heart. If you want to know how you can help, please reach out to me directly: chadcollins@fosna.org.
Take Action!
Contact the UEFA!
Take one minute to write to UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin
On Friday, July 15th the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld decisions by UEFA and FIFA which exclude Russian national teams and clubs. It is clear that when the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) wants to take action to exclude a country and its players, it can act swiftly to do so. Why the double standards? Why the hypocrisy? Why the lack of accountability in regard to Israel?
Contact Pres. Biden!
Tell Biden: We’re done with U.S. support for Israel’s ethnic cleansing and apartheid
(JVP Action) For far too long, U.S. administrations have been complicit in and supported the Israeli government's brutal and systematic human rights violations against Palestinians, including the crime of apartheid. Send a quick email to President Biden to share your deep objection and protest to his current trip to the apartheid state of Israel.
Get Involved!
FOSNA invites you to join us in the following events and activities:
August 5-7
Seeing Through the Prism of Justice: Pax Christi's 50th Anniversary Conference
For its 50th anniversary, Pax Christi is holding its first in-person conference since 2016! Celebrate the legacy of peace and gospel nonviolence in Washington, D.C. and connect with FOSNA's Executive Director Jonathan Kuttab.
August 20
Middle East Peace Now Monthly Forum
FOSNA Executive Director Jonathan Kuttab will be the keynote speaker for Middle East Peace Now's Monthly Forum on August 20, at 10:00-11:30am Central Time. Stay tuned for more details and learn more about Middle East Peace Now here.
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Weekly
Sabeel Prayer Service. Join Sabeel every Thursday (6pm Jerusalem) for online Bible Study, discussion, and prayer. Examine scripture in light of the ongoing realities confronting the Palestinian Church and the pursuit of Palestinian liberation.
Wave of Prayer. Subscribe to receive Sabeel's Wave of Prayer, enabling friends of Sabeel around the world to pray over issues of critical concern to the Holy Land on a weekly basis.
Kumi Now! (Week 30) Family Unification. On July 31, 2003 Israel passed the Nationality and Entry into Israel Law, making the lives of thousands of Palestinian individuals and families even more precarious and complex. Here’s what you need to know about passports and work permits for Palestinians so that together we can rise up.
Podcast: On the Ground for Palestine. On the Ground for Palestine is a weekly podcast to keep you updated on the news events and activism happening on the ground in Palestine and Israel. Each episode is short, less than 10 minutes, covering major stories from the past week, and is available as an audio-only podcast and as a video podcast. Our goal is to create something that is useful for activists for Palestine around the world.