wfn.org | LWF Denounces Israeli Occupation of Lutheran Church Premises in Beit Jala

["Frank Imhoff" <FRANKI@elca.org>]

Noko Calls for Withdrawal of Israeli Armed Forces

GENEVA, 28 August 2001 (LWI) - The Lutheran World Federation (LWF)
has strongly condemned the Israeli military occupation of the town of
Beit Jala, particularly the forces' misuse of the Lutheran church
there as a base for weapons' fire and military activities.

In a brief note to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon today, LWF
General Secretary, Rev. Dr. Ishmael Noko expresses "in the clearest
possible terms, the outrage" of the LWF's global family at the
invasion of "one of the holy places of the Christian community of
Beit Jala" and the danger in which this action has thrust innocent
people including the children and staff of the Lutheran orphanage in
the church premises there.

"I cannot refrain from saying how deeply this rash and precipitate
action has undermined the LWF's faith" in the Israeli government's
goodwill in responding to the current crisis, Noko says.

The general secretary, currently attending meetings related to the
World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa, calls for
the immediate cessation of the Israel Defense Force activities in
Beit Jala, in particular in the premises of the Lutheran church
there, and for the withdrawal of all Israeli armed forces in the
locality.

According to a press release from Lutheran Bishop in Jerusalem, Munib
A. Younan, the Israeli army entered the church premises around 1.30
a. m today. On site is a church building, the Evangelical Lutheran
Church of the Reformation, an orphanage (Evangelical Lutheran Home)
the home of 50 children, and an inter-religious center and guesthouse
(the Abrahams Herberge).

Condemning the Israeli occupation of the premises Younan whose church
the Evangelical Lutheran in Jordan (ELCJ) has congregations in
Jerusalem, Jordan and Palestine also called for the immediate
withdrawal of the army from the church premises as well as from Beit
Jala. The 3,000-member ELCJ has been a member of the LWF since 1974.

Last October the LWF general secretary wrote to the then Israeli
Prime Minister Ehud Barak protesting Israeli forces' occupation of
the LWF-run Augusta Victoria Hospital in East Jerusalem.

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now has 133
member churches in 73 countries representing over 60.5 million of the
nearly 64.3 million Lutherans worldwide. The LWF acts on behalf of
its member churches in areas of common interest such as ecumenical
relations, theology, humanitarian assistance, human rights,
communication, and the various aspects of mission and development
work. Its secretariat is located in Geneva, Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the information service of the
Lutheran World Federation (LWF). Unless specifically noted, material
presented does not represent positions or opinions of the LWF or of
its various units. Where the dateline of an article contains the
notation (LWI), the material may be freely reproduced with
acknowledgement.]

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