September 27, 2005

Israel has implemented a policy of collective punishment against Palestinian people throughout years of its occupation; including mass arrests, home demolition, land razing, closures, and shelling. All these policies have caused tremendous psychological damage to all Palestinian people, especially children as indicated by GCMHP research studies.

No more than two weeks after the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, Israel has intensely resumed shelling with F16 airplanes, mock air raids, sound bombs, and continuous circling in the air. This has shattered people's hope that Gaza can be a free and safe place. These incidents came to bring back to the memories and conscious of the Palestinian people all the traumatic incidents that they have been exposed to during years of occupation.

This type of bombing has never happened before, during the time when the settlers and their children used to live inside Gaza. It is to prove that the aim is to intimidate and frighten the Palestinian people, particularly children on a massive scale.

This shelling is leaving negative psychological effects on Palestinians including massive panic in schools and kindergartens, especially that many of the shelling incidents took place at night and as children were entering or leaving their schools. Additionally, it causes general anxiety and stress associated with hearing the noise of air planes flying in the air. As a result, children cling tightly to their parents, become aggressive, and suffer from bed wetting and nightmares.

It is legitimate to ask here about the aim of using such forms of shelling against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip. There is no rationale but to spread fear and intimidation and leave people with chaos, helplessness, and inability to control or predict their daily living. This also leaves them with mounting feelings of despair, frustration, and hopelessness.

We believe that the escalating incidents of the last few days pulled all of us again in a circle of violence and revenge. All these assaults lead to increasing feeling of anger and desire to retaliate, strengthening the vicious cycle of violence and counter violence, which will negatively impact the trust relations and peace building in the region.

We, at Gaza Community Mental Health Programme, strongly affirm our opposition to all forms of violence targeting civilians on both sides and to the brutal inhumane acts of killing and collective punishment. All of this constitutes grave violations of the rights of people in freedom, security, and dignity.

We also appeal to all mental health professionals, human rights activist, and peace loving people in Israel and around the world to intervene urgently and pressure all parties to halt all forms of violence, with particular pressure on Israel to stop its systematic destructive policy which is affecting the mental wellbeing, peace, and stability in the region.

Gaza Community Mental Health Programme