May 19, 2021

Dear ISNA Family,

Assalamu alaikum.

We greet you with peace and pray you are safe. As you know, recent events in Palestine have brought much pain and grief to us all. Our brothers and sisters in Gaza—already under blockade and occupation—have been subject to relentless bombardment for days. Israeli airstrikes have killed well over 220 Palestinians, including at least 64 children. And they have forced over 70,000 Gazans to flee. Airstrikes have not only destroyed countless lives and homes, but they have damaged or destroyed critical infrastructure, including hospitals, water pipes, and electric lines.

Now in its tenth day, the bombing of Gaza has sharply exacerbated a humanitarian crisis in one of the most impoverished places on the planet. International calls for a ceasefire have been issued but they have thus far failed to halt the violence. Only recently did the United States express its interest in a ceasefire, after blocking multiple United Nations Security Council statements calling for a ceasefire. We hope and pray, along with our brothers and sisters in humanity, for an end to the violence.

We hope and pray for peace to prevail in one of the world’s most longstanding conflicts. We also call on the international community to do more to alleviate the oppression of the Palestinian people. And we call on the Biden administration to restore our country’s moral leadership in global affairs.

May Allah have mercy on us all, and may He bring healing and comfort to victims of oppression, whoever they are and wherever they may be.