Israeli occupation forces have once again shown complete disregard towards principals of medical neutrality when they forced a PMRS Doctor and member of the PMRS Administrative Council, to strip in a public street near Al Nohmaan village in Bethlehem.

On the evening of Friday the 5th of November, Dr Mohamed Odeh was stopped whilst driving back to his home in Beit Jala. Dr Odeh, who was accompanied by his wife and six children aged between two and thirteen years, was returning from a village outside of Bethlehem where they had broken the Ramadan fast with his wife's family.

An Israeli military jeep stopped the car and shined a bright light at the Doctor and his family. They forced him to show his ID, whilst snubbing the Medical ID he also presented. Whilst pointing their guns at the family they began to shout at them terrifying the children who were by this time crying hysterically. The soldiers then forced the Doctor to vacate his car and ordered him to take his clothes off down to his underwear. They then forced Dr Odeh to remain standing in the public street near his car and in front of his family.

Dr Odeh later confirmed that this is not the first time incidents of this nature have occurred in the area, with numerous reports coming from the Bethlehem's residents of psychological torture and humiliation.

Yesterday's events were particularly offensive because of the religious significance of this current month, the humiliation that this man had to endure in front of his family, and because Dr Odeh made it very clear that he was a Doctor. Dr Odeh clearly presented no risk he was merely traveling home with family after what had been an enjoyable evening, yet this did not deter the soldiers from humiliating him and terrifying his young children.

PMRS asks all humanitarian, human rights and health organizations to protest this recent incident, to pressurize the Israeli occupation forces to allow the free movement of medical teams, and to respect principals of medical neutrality.

Give Sight to the Blind and Freedom to the Captives

We, as members of the Anglican Peace and Justice Network, representing 23 Provinces of the worldwide 75,000,000 member Anglican Communion, have visited the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem over these last 8 days, and during that time have been inspired by the faith of the people in the diocese, while also being exposed to the draconian conditions of the continuing Occupation under which so many Palestinians live. We have heard from Israeli Jewish voices, and from Palestinians, both those who reside in Israel and those who live under Occupation. We note the continuing policies of illegal home demolitions, detentions, checkpoints, identity card systems and the presence of the Israeli military that make any kind of normal life impossible. We have seen and heard the effects of the overwhelming presence of settlements or colonies in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and in Gaza, and the bypass roads and highways that connect them while disconnecting Palestinian villages, one from another. We have seen the destruction of precious arable lands and restrictions on precious water resources. Finally, and shockingly, we have been exposed to the separation wall that violates international boundaries, causing mayhem in Palestinian daily life and further defines Israeli intentions to appropriate land from the Palestinians.

We conclude from our experience that there is little will on behalf of the Israeli government to recognize the rights of the Palestinians to a sovereign state to be created in the West Bank – which includes East Jerusalem – and Gaza. Israel, with the complicity of the United States, seems determined to flout international laws, whether they are the Geneva Conventions, United Nations resolutions or the most recent decision of the International Court of Justice in declaring the separation wall illegal. In fact, we note that this latter decision is based on building the wall on Palestinian territory, which once again demonstrates the illegality of the Occupation itself.

We deeply respect and honor those Israelis who are prepared to end this miserable Occupation and recognize a Palestinian State, people courageously committed to justice and who work against home demolitions, who promote human rights and oppose settlements, bypass roads and the separation wall. And we pay tribute to the courage, endurance and hope of the Palestinian people who suffer the dreadful injustice of the Occupation.

We deplore the unwillingness of the Israeli government to implement United Nations resolutions 242 and 338. At the same time, we want to assure the Israeli Jewish community of our concern for their security and safety, to be able live without fear. We deplore the unbroken cycle of violence, which has claimed too many innocent lives on both sides. We condemn violence whatever the source. We reach out to Palestinians and Israelis of good will, assuring both of them of our love and support in ending this long and troubled conflict. We embrace all those who have lost loved ones in the violence and extend our deepest sympathies.

We offer not only our solidarity for a just peace, but also our observation that it is the Occupation in its many facets that foments the violence and fuels the conflict. Collective punishment of the Palestinian people must be brought to an end.

We therefore urge the following steps in order to achieve a sovereign and independent Palestine living alongside a secure Israel recognized by and at peace with her neighbors:

• The withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from all occupied areas in accordance with 1967 borders and a complete halt to settlement building, both new or expanded, to be followed by a process of phasing out settlements altogether
• The immediate dismantling of the separation wall in compliance with the ruling of the International Court of Justice wherever the wall violates West Bank land
• The introduction of an international peacekeeping force under the auspices of the United Nations into the Occupied Territories charged with maintaining security so that both sides may be free from further attacks
• A humanitarian effort led by the United Nations to provide relief to the suffering Palestinian people
• The immediate resumption of negotiations involving Israel and the Palestinian Authority under the umbrella of the United Nations, European Union, Russia, the United States and the Arab League (while we support a total withdrawal from Gaza, we urge it to be part of an overall resolution of the conflict).
• That negotiations be based on United Nations resolutions 242 and 338 that results in a viable and sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital as well as the capital of Israel, and assures the right of return for Palestinian refugees
• The unconditional recognition of the state of Palestine must be implemented if peace is to prevail in the Middle East.

As an aside, we are deeply troubled by the use of United States made weapons and aircraft provided to Israel and being used for attacks on civilian targets, which occur with increasing frequency. We urge a moratorium on the use of such weapons, which violate U.S. law.

And we address a word to the wider conflict in the Middle East. The war in Iraq further fuels anger and hatred during these already volatile times. We urge the withdrawal of U.S. forces to be replaced with an international presence led by the United Nations. Further, we believe that a much more constructive course would be for President Bush and Prime Minister Blair to intervene and resuscitate the peace process as a direct action of healing and reconciliation for the global community.

Finally, we call upon the faith communities, and especially the Anglican Communion, to a time of focused and intentional prayer and advocacy for peace in the Holy Land. We call on the leadership of the Abrahamic Faiths from around the world to exercise their authority and influence on the political leadership among the several nations who carry the responsibility for making a just peace.

For the last 48 hours, the Union of Health Work Committees (UHWC), medical facilities are in state of top emergency in the northern governorate of Gaza Strip.

The medical teams are working continuously to cope with the increasing number of causalities, due to a massive incursion of Israeli forces to the northern governorate, especially Jabalia.

Israeli tanks, helicopters, and other military forces are attacking the area through four main sectors. Israeli forces are demolishing houses, destroying infrastructure and bulldozing trees at the same time they snipe at every moving target, disregarding whether it is a child, women, old man or a youth.

The chicken farms and different animal farms had their share in destruction. A chicken farm at Abed Rabuh Quarter in Jabalia has been completely bulldozed at this morning.

Al–Awda Hospital received till this moment 42 injured people, 17 of them are under 15 years old, 8 women, in addition to 8 martyrs (most of the injuries are due to explosive bullets). Another governmental hospital in the same area has received tens of causalities also.

UHWC, Al-Quds Medical Center in Beit Hanoun has been working 24 hours a day to cover the expected increasing number of casualties and to offer other medical emergencies because Beit Hanoun has been isolated from the rest of Gaza Strip.

Al-Assria (Al-Luhiedan) Medical Center in Jabalia Refugee Camp is now in the middle of battle with Israeli tanks and snipers just 50 meters away from the center. All the other health and community activities of Al-Luhiedan Community Health Center have been halted as it works as a first front medical aid center.

The first aid medical teams and the ambulance service of the UHWC (138 volunteers, men and women) are working day and night to rescue and evacuate the injured people and offer highly needed medical and food supplies.

UHWC teams call all international and human rights organizations, the Red Cross, and United Nations, and all those who are seeking just peace in the area to urgently interfere to stop this massacre against the Palestinian people. At the same time we need pressure on the Israeli government to stop its harassment of the medical teams and civilians.

For more information, please contact Dr. Sayed Ajadbah, Executive Director, Union of Health Work Committees - Gaza.