Source: Mondoweiss.net
“The [recent] Advisory Opinion by the International Court of Justice,” Archbishop Justin Welby writes, “makes definitively clear that Israel’s presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is unlawful and needs to end as rapidly as possible.”
“It is clear that ending the occupation is a legal and moral responsibility,” the head of the Church of England said in a statement released earlier this month.
In his August 2 response to the ICJ’s July 19 opinion, Archbishop Justin Welby wrote, “At a time when the world is marked by increasing violations of international law—and commitment to a rules-based system is in question—it is imperative that governments around the world reaffirm their unwavering commitment to all decisions by the International Court of Justice, irrespective of the situation.”
Supporters of the Palestinian struggle for civil rights and self-determination applaud the Archbishop’s statement, citing it as a significant reversal from the Church of England’s position on Palestine/Israel.
Earlier this year, a Disciplinary Tribunal of the Church of England imposed upon the Rev. Dr. Stephen Sizer, a prominent U.K. cleric, and critic of Christian Zionism, a 12-year ban on clergy activities on a charge of antisemitism brought by the Board of Deputies of British Jews—a charge vehemently denied by Sizer and many others familiar with the case. In February, Archbishop Welby refused to meet with Palestinian pastor Munther Isaac, only later apologizing and meeting with Isaac on a subsequent visit to the UK.
Charlotte Marshall, Director of Sabeel-Kairos UK, a registered Christian charity that works for justice and equality for Palestinians, said, “After years of pressing the Church of England to be more outspoken in its support of the Palestinian Christian community and challenge their oppression by the Israeli state, we are delighted to see the Archbishop of Canterbury calling for an end to Israel’s occupation as a ‘legal and moral necessity.’”
“For the first time,” Marshall told Mondoweiss, “we did not see the Archbishop apply ‘balance’, but rather stand in full support of the Palestinian people, stating that the occupation has ‘denied the Palestinian people dignity, freedom and hope.’”
Other recent statements from church leaders reflect the stark turn-around in the Church of England’s public position regarding the situation in Palestine. The week before the Archbishop spoke out, Bishop Rachel Treweek of Gloucester declared, “In the past I have been wary of using the word apartheid…, but having seen even more starkly how life is now in the occupied Palestinian territory, I wish to stand alongside other individuals and groups, not least Christians, in boldly naming apartheid.”…