During recess, over sixty members of Congress embarked on Aipac-endorsed trips to Israel and many now view the wall as “necessary” and a “good thing” for Israel’s security. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who was part of a delegation to Israel, said, “Many in Congress feel the fence is an important contributor to preventing acts of terror” and the wall’s route should “absolutely not” be linked to loan guarantees. If your Congressional representative was one of those who went on a trip to Israel, your call is especially important. A list of those who went to the region can be found at the bottom of this email.

ACTION:

• As outlined in our July 29 email to you, preparing a brief letter-to-the-editor or participating constructively in a talk radio show is a good way to educate people.  
• Call your Senators’ and Representative’s offices with this message:  “Please help the President stop Israel’s building of a Separation Wall on West Bank land, even if this requires financial pressure. The leaders of Christian churches in Bethlehem write that the Separation Wall’s consequences will be devastating to the Christian Community.” The Capitol switchboard will connect you:  Senate 202-224-3121; House 202-225-3121
• Another appropriate action is to call the White House comment line (202-456-1111) and encourage them to continue implementing the Road Map by taking necessary steps (including even reducing financial aid) to stop Israel from building this “fence” on Palestinian land.

RESOURCES: Many church leaders are speaking out against the construction of the wall.  Attached you will find a bulletin insert prepared by the Mennonite Central Committee. The insert is also on our website at: http://www.cmep.org/documents/bulletininsert.pdf.   Feel free to adapt this insert for your churches. Also, the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem recently wrote a statement about the separation wall, and appealed to all leaders “to remove this impediment to a comprehensive and lasting peace.”   The text of the message with the signers follows.  The actual letter is found on our website at: http://www.cmep.org/Statements/2003Aug28.htm

You can find other resources on the wall at CMEP’s Documents and Resources webpage---http://www.cmep.org/documents/documents.htm

These include: a map of the wall http://www.cmep.org/documents/fencemap.htm, CMEP’s letter to Dr. Rice about the fence: http://www.cmep.org/letters/2003July21_fence.htm , UNRWA’s Report on the Impact of the Wall: http://www.un.org/unrwa/emergency/stories/barrier/part01.html and Report on Wall by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: http://www.reliefweb.int/hic-opt/wall.htm

 STATEMENT regarding the Separation Wall

Patriarch Michel Sabbah -- Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem;  Patriarch Torkom II -- Armeneian Apostolic Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem;  Fr. Giovanni Battistelli, O.F.M. -- Custos of the Holy Land; Anba Abraham -- Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of Jerusalem;  Swerios Malki Murad -- Syrian Orthodox Archbishop of Jerusalem;  Abba Cuostos -- Ethiopian Orthodox Archbishop of Jerusalem;  Riah Abu El-Assal -- Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem;   Munib A. Younan -- Lutheran Evangelical Bishop of Jerusalem;  Archimandrite Mtanious Haddad -- Greek Catholic Patriarchal Exarch. Jerusalem;  Butros Malki -Syrian Catholic Bishop in Jerusalem