WASHINGTON – A Palestinian pastor is planning to raise awareness of the plight of Palestinians among US evangelical Baptists. He says the people of Palestine have endured “massive” human rights violations.
Though the move may initially raise eyebrows – given that many evangelicals in the US are strong supporters of Israel – the Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb, senior pastor of Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, said he hopes to reach out to US Baptists for support after attending the fourth annual Human Rights Defenders Policy forum last week at The Carter Center in Atlanta.
Former President Jimmy Carter, who chaired last week’s gathering of human rights advocates from 20 countries, is meanwhile spearheading a new Baptist effort to counter the "negative" and judgmental image of Baptists presented in the media, which some say is largely painted by conservative leaders in the Southern Baptist Convention.
Carter, who is known for his interest in the Israel-Palestinian conflict, has criticised Israel’s policies in the Palestinian territories, comparing it to the former policy of apartheid in South Africa in his highly controversial book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid”.
“I can go on and on and on talking about human rights violations in Palestine,” said Raheb at a debriefing forum Monday in Washington on the September 5-7 human rights gathering.
“Unfortunately, somehow the world got used to this; maybe because it is the longest ongoing conflict,” said the Palestinian human rights activist.
He added, “When people look at Palestine, often they have the feeling there is a double standard when it comes to human rights, because the rights of he Palestinians are less than the rights of Israeli people.”
The pastor criticised Israel for its human rights violations, describing the Gaza Strip as the world’s largest open air prison and comparing the West Bank to Swiss cheese where Israel gets the cheese and Palestinians live in the holes.
