CHILDHOOD BEHIND BARS CAMPAIGN NEWS
Our ongoing Childhood Behind Bars campaign has been building momentum, urging the UK government to act and ensuring that the voices of the Palestinian children traumatised by Israeli military detention are heard.
426 MPs LOBBIED BY CAMPAIGN SUPPORTERS
18,000 PEOPLE CONTACTED FOR THE CAMPAIGN
6 CAMPAIGN EVENTS
Including at Greenbelt, the House of Lords and Rochester Cathedral
POTENTIAL AUDIENCE OF 250,000 REACHED THROUGH MEDIA
Including features in Church Times, Christian Today, Reform Magazine, and an interview on UCB Christian Radio
UPCOMING ACTIONS
Take part in our 10 Days of Action – 20-29 November
Launching on World Children’s Day on 20 November and culminating on Palestinian Solidarity Day, we’re raising awareness of child detention and our Childhood Behind Bars campaign with 10-days of action.
Help us spread the word about the campaign, encourage others to take part, and find out what else you can do to support Palestinian children growing up under occupation.
We’ve lots lined up – follow us on Facebook, X or Bluesky or use the links below to take part.
DAY 10 - Send a message of solidarity to Palestinian children
On the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, stand with children who’ve suffered military detention by writing a message on our message wall. We’ll pass these on through our partners who work directly with child ex-detainees.
DAY 9 - Write to your MP and encourage others to do the same
Your MP has the power to pressure the government to bring about real change for Palestinian children. You can email your MP today quickly and easily through our website. Spread the word and encourage others to do the same!
DAY 8 - Share eyewitness accounts of the trauma of military detention
Peter, from the East Jerusalem YMCA, works directly with children who’ve experienced military detention. He spoke to us about their work and the trauma they see among the children they help.
DAY 7 - Buy our ‘Unchained Childhood’ Alternative Gift
Our Unchained Childhood Alternative Gift is a great way to support our partners helping traumatised children while also giving you a meaningful gift to pass on to a friend.
DAY 6 - Explain why child detention violates international law
Download and share our Childhood Behind Bars report, which details Israel’s policy of systematic detention of children in the West Bank and lists what the UK government needs to do to act.
DAY 5 - Help children recovering from trauma of military detention
Our partners work directly with Palestinian children traumatised by military detention. You can support their work, and the work of our partners across the region, with a donation to our Christmas Appeal.
DAY 4 – Look at the bigger picture: the occupation
Military detention is just one part of the wider picture of occupation. Zoom in with us into another aspect of the occupation and watch this video on movement restriction that was released as part of the #StopSettlements campaign.
DAY 3 - Get your church involved
We’ve new prayers and sermon notes shaped by our Childhood Behind Bars Campaign and based on the Advent season. We would love churches to use these to pray and work for the day when every child knows safety, dignity and peace.
DAY 2 - Explain what happens to children who are arrested
Share our Childhood Behind Bars campaign video, which follows the experience of Navid - no child should have to go through this.
DAY 1 - Share child-detainees’ stories
On World Children’s Day, we remember that children should play, not languish in prison. Raise awareness of what’s happening by sharing Amir’s story. He was arrested by the IDF while playing football.
THE CAMPAIGN SO FAR…
The Campaign Reaches Westminster – Briefing MPs
Embrace held a successful event at the House of Lords, kindly hosted by Rt Revd Rachel Treweek, Lord Bishop of Gloucester.
During the event, attendees heard from an Embrace partner who works directly with former child detainees in Israel and West Bank. They shared a deeply moving testimony about the children they support, offering first-hand accounts of arrest, detention, and life after release.
The panel also included our own CEO, Jamie Eyre, who spoke about Embrace’s commitment to standing alongside our partners, and Tareq Shrourou, Director and Principal Lawyer at Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights, who outlined the international legal framework for child protection, Israel’s obligations under international law, and the UK’s responsibility to uphold these standards. The closing Q&A session opened up constructive discussions between panellists and parliamentarians on potential pathways forward and the UK’s role in ensuring accountability.
The event was followed by productive meetings with parliamentarians, where we were able to privately spend time sharing more about our campaign and explore how they can make a real difference to this issue.
““These children deserve to have a voice, and that voice deserves to be heard by the politicians in the hope that it will intrigue some kind of change.””
The campaign on the Road
We launched our campaign at Greenbelt, inviting festival-goers to email their MP and also untie a ribbon from our Childhood Behind Bars cage to take as a marker that they took action.
Muhanad Al Quaisy was Embrace's speaker at Greenbelt. He spoke movingly of witnessing the impact of child detention among his friends and family.
In October, Childhood Behind Bars featured as one of the prayer stations in Coventry Cathedral's vigil to mark 2 years of the war in Gaza.
In November, Embrace was privileged to host Peter Nasir, National General Secretary of our partner the East Jerusalem YMCA, for a week in the UK. He took part in a series of impactful engagements for our campaign, including media interviews and public events.
At Rochester Cathedral, Peter spoke about the realities of daily life living under occupation in the West Bank and the work of EJ-YMCA helping young people recover from the trauma of military detention.
At an Revelation Church, Chichester, Peter again spoke about the work of the EJ-YMCA and witnessing the long-term trauma experienced by children who've been held in military detention.
The campaign also made a visit to Just Love's national gathering at St Paul's Church, Hammersmith, where we spoke to Christian students and graduates about the campaign and the work of Embrace.