Muslim Leaders Launch Tree-Planting Initiative to Support Palestine, Urge Kenya to Take Stronger Stand

 By Jameson Mutua 

A coalition of leading Muslim organizations under the banner of Voice of Palestine has today launched a nationwide tree-planting initiative that seeks to raise funds and awareness for the suffering people of Palestine, while also contributing to Kenya’s environmental restoration efforts.

The initiative is spearheaded by groups including the Jamia Mosque Committee (Nairobi), National Muslim Leaders Forum (NAMLEF), Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (SUPKEM), and the Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya (CIPK). It aims to align humanitarian support for Palestine with Kenya’s reforestation agenda, as championed by President William Ruto’s government.

Speaking during the launch, Ahmed Shariff, representing Voice of Palestine, said the programme was a dual call to action — to stand in solidarity with Palestinians facing a humanitarian catastrophe and to bolster Kenya’s efforts to increase tree cover and combat climate change.

“We are not only planting trees to green our country, but we are also planting hope for the people of Palestine, who continue to endure immense suffering,” said Shariff.

He painted a grim picture of the situation in Gaza, describing it as a “systematic and sustained genocide” where over 70,000 lives have been lost, many of them women and children. Shariff decried the weaponization of food, with Israeli forces allegedly blocking humanitarian convoys while civilians face starvation.

More than 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents are now displaced. No place is safe. The images coming out of Gaza are horrifying — starved children, bombed hospitals, and destroyed homes.

The coalition criticized what it called the “global indifference” to the crisis, drawing parallels to the 1994 Rwandan genocide, which was worsened by inaction from the international community.

Kenya, the statement emphasized, has historically played a strong role in peacebuilding, most recently in Haiti, and should therefore be at the forefront of calls for a ceasefire and justice in Palestine.

Kenya itself bears the scars of colonial violence and dispossession. The coalition reminded the public that Kenya was once proposed as a possible Jewish homeland. Had that happened, perhaps it would be Kenyans today facing the kind of devastation now occurring in Gaza.

Voice of Palestine called on the Kenyan government to unequivocally condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza. They urged the government to advocate for the immediate and unhindered entry of food and humanitarian aid into the territory and to re-evaluate Kenya’s diplomatic ties with Israel in light of what they described as repeated violations of international law and human rights.

“This is not the time for muted diplomacy or symbolic gestures,” Shariff declared. “Kenya must take a firm and moral stand.”

The tree-planting campaign is expected to be carried out in collaboration with government agencies, the corporate sector, and private citizens. Organizers believe that by merging environmental action with humanitarian advocacy, they can inspire both local and global change.

The initiative also aims to remind Kenyans  especially the youth — of the country’s proud history of standing up for justice and oppressed peoples.

“We will continue to plant trees, raise our voices, and nurture the values of peace, justice, and humanity,” Shariff concluded.

The Voice of Palestine movement says it will hold further awareness campaigns and fundraising drives in the coming months, encouraging Kenyans from all walks of life to support both the environment and victims of war and displacement.


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