Remembering Sabra and Shatila in the context of the Gaza massacre

(SEPT. 16, 2014) -- Today marks one of history’s most tragic commemorations – the 1982 Israeli-backed massacre of thousands of innocent Palestinians in the Lebanese refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila.



As the American Muslims for Palestine marks this event, we also prayerfully think upon the nearly 2,200 Palestinians in Gaza who died in Israel’s incomprehensible attack on Gaza this summer. As images from residential neighborhoods like Shujayea rolled out of Gaza on July 20, 2014, which showed women, children and the elderly lying crumbled in the streets where Israeli forces had gunned them down, it was impossible not to draw parallels to Sabra and Shatila. 



On Sept. 16-18, 1982, Lebanese Christian Phalangists, under the approving eye of then-Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon, launched a three-day assault on Palestinian living in the Lebanese refugee camps Sabra and Shatila.



Officially, no one has ever been able to arrive at an exact number of dead, though figures range from the 1,000 corpses buried in a mass grave by the International Committee of the Red Cross to at least 3,500. Many people were buried beneath of the rubble of demolished homes and buildings and hundreds were rounded up and carried away on trucks, never to return, according to Dr. Laurie King-Irani, who has conducted research into this massacre.



Sadly, Sabra and Shatila is just one milestone on a roadmap that has paved the way for the dispossession and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians since before 1948. Zionism, a racist political ideology that calls for the removal of Palestine’s indigenous population to make room for Israel, is at the heart of Palestinian suffering. The blueprint for transferring Palestinians was contained in “Plan Dalet,” distributed to Zionist paramilitary groups in 1947 as they began to destroy and depopulate Palestinian villages.



Since then, Israel has engaged in numerous acts, such as the Sabra and Shatila and Gaza massacres, designed to ethnically cleanse Palestinians from the Holy Land, either through murder, incarceration or displacement.

AMP demands that the United States ends its unconditional diplomatic, political and financial support of Israel. And we call upon the global community to bring pressure to bear so Israel, finally, will be held accountable for its war crimes and continual crimes against humanity.  



To honor the victims of Sabra and Shatila, as well as all those who today are suffering under Israel’s occupation, learn more about the massacre and make a promise to educate yourselves about Palestine by checking our our Resources Section on our website. Make sure to attend AMP’s seventh annual Conference for Palestine in the US: Rising from the Ashes – Gaza Teaches Life! Go to conference.ampalestine.org to register.