It welcomed the Synod’s call to study the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories from theological and human rights perspectives and to review investment policies related to the occupied territories in light of the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice on July 19, 2024.
The committee also praised the Synod’s call to work toward a just and lasting peace that guarantees security, rights and dignity for all peoples.
It described the General Synod’s decision as “an important step in strengthening the role of churches worldwide in promoting justice and peace.”
The committee urged churches and Christian institutions around the world “to continue listening to Palestinian churches, support efforts to end the occupation, advance a just and comprehensive peace and preserve the Palestinian Christian presence in the holy land.”
On July 4, Archbishop Atallah Hanna, head of the Sebastia of the Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem, called on Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant churches worldwide to adopt the Kairos Palestine document and take “clearer and bolder” humanitarian and moral positions on the suffering of Palestinians, particularly in Gaza.
Hanna criticised what he described as the reliance of some Western churches on “polished diplomatic language” when addressing Palestinian suffering.
He said Israel’s genocide in Gaza “does not require diplomatic statements but clear, courageous and strong positions aimed at achieving justice, freedom and ending the occupation.”
According to Gaza’s health ministry, more than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 173,000 wounded since Israel’s genocide began on October 8, 2023. Palestinian authorities also say that about 90 percent of the enclave’s civilian infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.
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