This weekend, I held my breath, hoping the ceasefire in Gaza would remain intact. Thankfully, it’s still in place, but after Israel’s 269+ violations of the deal, this is not the time to look away. You have advocated endlessly for Palestinians, and more recently you’ve helped uplift the story of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya and demand his release. Although he still remains in detention – the international pressure is working. Because of pressure campaigns, his lawyer was able to meet with him and confirm what we already assumed: Dr. Abu Safiya is being tortured by Israel. We’ve also been hearing that he might be part of an upcoming prisoner exchange as part of the ceasefire deal, so we need to elevate our demands for Palestine’s doctors today!
While Israel has slowed its bombing of Gaza, it is doubling down on its violent assault on the West Bank. Israeli forces — often alongside Israeli settlers — have escalated their raids, killing and detaining Palestinians and destroying homes across Jenin, Nablus, Tulkarem, and al-Khalil*. Israel’s aggression has displaced about 45,000 Palestinians — the largest number in the West Bank since the Naksa** in 1967. We are witnessing ethnic cleansing in real-time. Meanwhile, Trump’s ethnic cleansing plan for the U.S. to seize ownership of Gaza only enables Netanyahu’s genocidal actions. With speculations about the potential of Dr. Abu Safiya’s release, we’re seeing firsthand what we can achieve when we refuse to abandon our siblings in Palestine. Every letter keeps the pressure on. Let’s show them we won’t stop until every doctor, every Palestinian, is free from Israel’s occupation.
While Israel continues to destroy Palestinian healthcare, you have already helped build its future. Thanks to your generosity, we raised enough funds to sponsor 19 Palestinian medical students who are studying in Cuba as part of our Valentine’s Day fundraiser! The thousands of dollars you donated will support these students for an entire year. These future doctors will one day return to serve their people and rebuild Gaza’s destroyed healthcare system — all because you chose to stand with them. Supporting Palestinian life in a world that keeps trying to crush it is a radical act of love! One of the most powerful things you can do is bring this care and solidarity everywhere you go. It’s why we’ve been asking you to talk to your doctors about the crimes committed against Palestinian physicians. Our mission is to educate the immediate people around us so they can see as clearly as we do that we have more in common with Palestinians in Gaza than we do with the war criminals calling the shots. We can’t change Israel’s mind, but we can change each other’s. If you know anyone who has a loving heart, but hasn’t been brought into the movement yet, share this email so they can learn about Dr. Hussam Abu-Safiya and the struggle of Palestinian doctors. *al-Khalil is the original Palestinian name of the city that Israel calls Hebron. **The Naksa, Arabic for setback, refers to Israel’s total occupation of the remainder of Palestine, and the displacement of 300,000 Palestinians in 1967.
Until Liberation, Nour and the entire CODEPINK team |
Now that we have Israel’s attention, we have to keep pushing.