In this episode, our former CEO Tim Livesey speaks with the Very Reverend Canon Richard Sewell, the Dean of St George’s College, Jerusalem. Richard speaks about the events leading up to the devastating war in Gaza, the impact the war has had on Al Ahli Anglican Hospital in Gaza City, and the violence that is intensifying in the West Bank.

Richard Sewell moved to Jerusalem from London in September 2018, to take up the post of Dean of St George’s College. Although it was an unexpected move, the last six years has been the most challenging yet deeply fulfilling time of his many decades of ministry.

In this conversation, Richard paints a vivid picture of what life was like in Israel-Palestine in the years and months leading up to 7 October 2023. He described it like a “tinder box” - a land that had been parched for many years, and that one spark could set alight: “Nobody foresaw what would happen on 7 October but many of us in the land knew that things were not going to stay quiet … In some ways I was waiting for the moment when the fire began. I could not have imagined it would end up being what it is.”

Listen in to find out about the devastating impact of the war on Al Ahli Hospital, which had to temporarily close after being evacuated due to the fighting just days before this conversation took place. You’ll also learn about what is happening in the West Bank: daily incursions by the Israeli army, buildings being demolished, jobs lost, and the spread of poverty.

This conversation was recorded on 9 July 2024.

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