Reedley High School Teacher Joins Peace Mission to Israel/Palestine

From a Press Release embargoed until today (July 27, 2006):

Reedley High School Teacher Joins Peace Mission to Israel/Palestine

Don Friesen, Reedley High School teacher, will join a team of 11 peacemakers traveling to the Middle East July 26-August 8, 2006. The delegation will meet with Israeli, Palestinian and international human rights workers and document the situation of Palestinian families in the
West Bank whose lands, homes, and livelihoods have been threatened by expanding Israeli settlements and construction of the new "security fence."

"Whatever one's position is on the conflicts in the Middle East, it is clear that the plight of the Palestinian is one of the most desperate of any people on earth. If we hope to reach a just solution to this conflict, it is important to see what conditions are actually like for ordinary people in
Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Hebron," Friesen said.

The group is organized by Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), a faith-based initiative supported by Mennonites, Brethern in Christ, Quakers, and several Christian peace groups. Since 1993, CPT has placed violence-reduction teams in conflict settings in the Middle East, Haiti, Latin America, Europe, and North America. CPT has maintained a full time peace presence in Hebron, West Bank since June 1995.

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The following email is an update to the Press Release above

Peacemaker delegation arrives in Jerusalem

Thursday, July 27 -- As Israel continues to escalate its response against alleged Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, twelve members of a delegation sponsored by Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) arrived in Jerusalem today. During the next several days they will speak with representatives of Israeli and Palestinian peace and human rights organizations in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Delegates will then travel to Hebron, West Bank, where CPT's long-term team is based, and assist with CPT's ongoing work of violence deterrence, human rights documentation and accompaniment in the tensely divided Old City. They will also visit Palestinian farmers and shepherds in the outlying Hebron District whose land and livelihoods have been threatened
by expanding Israeli settlements.

Members of CPT's July 26-August 8 delegation are Lauretta Amundsen and David Szollosy (both from Willow Beach, Ontario), Mary Marjorie Bethea (Sherman Oaks, California), Paula Bhagyam (Houlton, Wisconsin), Nancy Birdsong (Geneva, NewYork), Jamey Bouwmeester and Kelley Evans (both from Shade, Ohio), Michael Del Ponte, San Ramon, California), Donald Friesen (Reedley, California), John McCarthy (Portsmouth, New Hampshire), Inger Styrbjrn (Kalmar, Sweden) and James R. Thomas (Bronx, NY). Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) is an initiative of the historic peace churches (Mennonites, Church of the Brethren, and Quakers) with support and membership from a range of Catholic and Protestant denominations. CPT has had a continuous presence in Hebron, West Bank, since June 1995.
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Doug Pritchard
Christian Peacemaker Teams
No weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper. Isaiah 54:17