Gaza (MNN) — Speculation surrounds Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s upcoming speech to the U.S. Congress. Slated to speak on Wednesday, Netanyahu will make history as the only world leader to speak at Congress four times.
Will he focus solely on the war in Gaza, highlight Iran’s growing threat, or announce progress in hostage negotiations?
A recent round of Israeli bombings struck Gaza City, and the Israeli military said it had eliminated half of the leadership of Hamas’ military wing since the start of the war. Meanwhile, the Israeli parliament passed a resolution on Thursday rejecting the establishment of a Palestinian state, a pillar of the U.S. three-phase ceasefire deal.
No matter which direction Netanyahu goes in his upcoming speech, Fadi Sharaiha with MENA Leadership Center says the situation on the ground needs attention.
“Around 38,000 Palestinians have been killed through this war in Gaza; we have around 100,000 [people] who are injured. Around 700,000 people will be unable to find water to drink in the coming few days,” Sharaiha says.
“It’s very, very bad; people are dying.”
Israel’s war against Hamas recently surpassed the nine-month mark and shows no signs of ending soon. “There is no timeline [for] eliminating an ideology or school of thought,” Sharaiha notes.
“[In] the beginning, Israel said they wanted three outcomes from the war on Gaza and one of them [was] to eliminate Hamas. At that point, wise people told them that they could not do this because Hamas is an ideology. It’s not like an army.”
The fighters of the Multi-Dimensional Unit maneuver on the ground in the Gaza Strip in the Iron Swords War.
(Wikimedia Commons)
MENA Leadership Center is preparing Christian leaders to help meet the needs of Gaza as soon as it becomes safe enough. More about MLC’s approach here.
“The U.N. is saying it will take 15 years to clean up around 40 million tons of war rubble in Gaza,” Sharaiha says, describing the difficult conditions that Palestinian Christians encounter.
“Christians don’t have houses anymore. Some churches have been bombed, and even the Baptist Hospital has been bombed. Christians are suffering just like any other non-Christian people in Gaza, so we are trying to see how we can help maybe the day after the war,” he continues.
“That’s why we are preparing for the course on how to handle refugees and displaced people within Gaza. It is important for church leaders to be ready, [to know] how to handle the influx of refugees and displace people whether it’s in the south side of Gaza [or] maybe in Egypt, Jordan.”
“Please pray for the peace in the Holy Land. Please pray for the Church in the Middle East; they are prepared to work and to do something for the people who are suffering,” Sharaiha requests.
Header image depicts residential buildings in Gaza destroyed during the first week of intensive bombing by Israeli aircraft. (Wikimedia Commons)
