From our partners in the Presbyterian Office of Public Witness:
Every year, hundreds of Palestinian children—some as young as 12 years old—are detained and arrested in an Israeli military detention system where ill treatment and abuse are widespread.
Many are taken from their families in night raids, held without charges or due process, and subjected to abuse and poor conditions while in custody.
Congresswoman Betty McCollum has introduced a “Dear Colleague” letter to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, urging diplomatic action from the State Department on the issue of human rights for Palestinian children.
Please contact your representative in Congress today and ask him or her to sign this letter and help raise the issue of the ill treatment of detained Palestinian children to the highest levels of our government.
Recognizing each child as God’s precious child, the 221st General Assembly (2015) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) reaffirmed a longstanding commitment to the human rights of children, expressed a particular concern for the human rights of Palestinian and Israeli children, and directed the Presbyterian Mission Agency, to create information documents, study guides, or other educational materials using information, research, and statistics from the Palestinian Authority and the State of Israel, United Nations agencies, including OCHA and UNICEF, and other human rights or nongovernmental organizations, such as B’Tselem, Defense for Children International Palestine, and Amnesty International to be made available through digital download at the PC(USA) website, as well as links to materials and research from other organizations.