wfn.org | LWF Encourages Israel, Palestine to Seize Opportunity for

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

LWF Encourages Israel, Palestine to Seize Opportunity for Peace
Election of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas a "New Chance"

GENEVA, 13 January 2005 (LWI) * The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has
appealed to both the Israeli and Palestinian leadership to seize the
opportunity for peace presented by the recent election of Mr Mahmoud Abbas
as President of the Palestinian Authority (PA).

In letters addressed today to the PA president-elect and Israeli Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon respectively, LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr Ishmael
Noko says the election of Abbas offers both sides "a new chance for peace"
in the Holy Land.

Noko requests Sharon to grasp this new chance "with both hands" and resume
negotiations with the elected PA leadership "at the earliest possible
juncture in order to strengthen the renewed hopes for peace that are
growing in the hearts of Palestinians and Israelis alike."

Congratulating PA President-elect Abbas, the LWF general secretary
underlines the major responsibility of leading the Palestinian people
toward peace and self-determination and in "negotiating an end to the
occupation that has caused so much conflict and suffering in your region."

Palestinians in the Occupied Territories elected the 69-year-old Abbas as
PA president on 9 January 2005. Abbas claimed victory over six other
candidates with 62 percent of the votes cast. He succeeds Yasser Arafat
who died 11 November 2004 after leading the Palestinian people for four
decades.

In his letter to the PA President-elect, Noko points to the LWF presence
in the Holy Land especially through its member church, the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Jordan (ELCJ) headed by Bishop Dr Munib A. Younan. "He
has been a powerful witness to all of us in the LWF family of the plight
and struggle of the Palestinian people, and a consistent voice for
political dialogue and inter-faith cooperation in overcoming violence and
occupation," he writes of Younan, whose church has congregations in
Israel, Jordan and Palestine.

Noko also recognizes the PA's cooperation with the LWF in facilitating the
delivery of essential health services through the Augusta Victoria
Hospital and other humanitarian activities of the Jerusalem-based
Department for World Service regional program.

The general secretary registers the LWF's appreciation of Arafat's
commitment to protecting the rights of all religious communities in
Palestine, saying such dedication was an important foundation for the
yet-to-be established state of Palestine. (387 words)

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF currently has 138
member churches in 77 countries all over the world, with a membership of
nearly 65 million Lutherans. The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches
in areas of common interest such as ecumenical and inter-faith 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 LWF's information service. 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 acknowledgment.]

*    *	   *

LWI online at: http://www.lutheranworld.org/News/Welcome.EN.html

LUTHERAN WORLD INFORMATION
PO Box 2100, CH-1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland
Tel: (41.22) 791.63.54
Fax: (41.22) 791.66.30
Editor's e-mail: pmu@lutheranworld.org