In the Gaza Strip, the cry of mothers, of fathers who clutch the lifeless bodies of children and who are continually forced to move in search of a little food and safer shelter from bombing, rises ever more intensely to the sky. I renew my appeal to the leaders: cease fire, release all hostages, fully respect humanitarian law. Mary Queen of Peace, pray for us.

—Pope Leo XIV, general audience, 28 May 2025

Fast for Gaza & urge Congress to act

Israel has been committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza for almost 20 months with U.S. political and military support. The population of over 2.1 million people has been forcibly displaced over and over again. Israeli military actions have killed roughly 53,000 Palestinian people, almost as many as U.S. military members killed in the entire Vietnam war. Over twice that number have sustained direct injuries from military attacks. Over eighty percent of the infrastructure in Gaza has been reduced to rubble, and the entire population is on the brink of famine after 11 weeks of siege preventing all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza.

Israel’s attempt to control the trickle of aid back into Gaza has been disastrous.  It is less a humanitarian plan than an attempt to incentivize the displacement of Palestinians into militarized zones. Enormous amounts of aid sit at the gates of Gaza awaiting permission from Israel to enter and for trusted international aid agencies to distribute. While Israel must stop their military assault for life to truly flourish, all they have to do to let life flow within Gaza’s walls again is get out of the way

Click here to read the Sisters of Mercy’s statement on Israel’s blockade of Gaza.

We are inviting you to advocate for relief of the Palestinian’s manufactured plight in two ways:

• Join the Veterans for Peace & FOSNA Fast for Gaza in a capacity you can sustain and publicize.
• Please use the draft email in the grey box at right (below on mobile devices) to urge your representative to co-sponsor Rep. Jayapal’s resolution matching S.Res 224 when it’s introduced and to increase pressure for Israel to permit UNRWA to operate throughout the region as they have done for decades.

Background

After barring all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza for more than two months, Israel permitted five trucks to enter on May 19. Three of them had food, enough for each of the 2.1 million people being starved as a war strategy to have 2.5 ounces of food. The other two trucks contained burial shrouds, an admission of Israel’s hopes for the besieged Palestinians trapped in the concentration camp.

Israel is now trickling in some additional aid but its so-called “aid distribution plan,” backed by the U.S., is not a humanitarian plan, but an attempt to contain, control and forcibly transfer Palestinians into areas near militarized zones, just so they can get food and basic necessities for their families. The launch of this tightly controlled distribution by the Israeli Defense Forces was carried out in such a fashion that it caused a stampede and soldiers fired guns to frighten desperately hungry people impatient for their first taste of food fit for consumption in months. On Sunday and Monday, Israeli forces opened fire at an aid distribution site, killing over 30 people and injuring at least 200 more. The United Nations have condemned Israel’s attempt to replace the long-standing structures of UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) which has been forbidden by Israel to operate in Israel or Palestine. Many other humanitarian groups have boycotted Israel’s dehumanizing methods.

Christians for a Ceasefire and Just Peace, a coalition in which the Mercy Justice Team participates, has joined our partner FOSNA (Friends of Sabeel North America) in supporting a 40-day fast for Gaza organized by Veterans for Peace, already a week underway. The goal is to create a massive surge in public awareness, expose Israel’s efforts to strip dignity from the Palestinian people, demand the immediate elimination of all restrictions of food, water, medicine, and humanitarian supplies into Gaza, and halt arms shipments to Israel. A core group of individuals are fasting in New York, but many are fasting wherever they are. Choose a fast you can sustain and publicize your efforts with friends, family and on social media.