Statement from the Palestine Forum of New Zealand

The Palestine Forum of New Zealand joins the international cry of alarm: Gaza is starving — and the world must respond with urgency and conscience.

In recent days, shocking scenes have emerged from Gaza’s hospitals: children too weak to cry, elderly people collapsing from exhaustion, entire families on the brink of death. Medical workers are reporting unprecedented levels of malnutrition and starvation across all age groups. Hundreds are now beyond the reach of aid unless immediate action is taken.

This is not a humanitarian crisis caused by natural disaster — this is a political crime, the result of Israel’s deliberate use of starvation as a weapon of war, in violation of international humanitarian law.

This is a last-minute call.

We call on:

• The Government of Aotearoa New Zealand to speak out forcefully against Israel’s blockade and famine policies, and to use every diplomatic and legal avenue to demand an immediate end to the siege on Gaza.
• The New Zealand public to stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza — through protest, education, advocacy, and humanitarian support.
• The international community to act now to prevent mass death, and to hold those responsible accountable.
• We also urge faith groups, cultural institutions, unions, student bodies, and tangata whenua to raise their voices and stand alongside our Palestinian whānau in this moment of unprecedented suffering.

What we are witnessing is not simply a tragedy — it is an atrocity. The starvation of Gaza is not a distant issue. It is a test of our shared humanity.

Let history not remember our silence. Let us remember our courage.

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