He continued: "Widespread parts of the United Methodist Church bureaucracy are claiming one primary solution to Middle East violence: punish Israel."
"Church agencies should strive towards fairness and factuality. Targeting Israel as the Middle-East's unique villain, while virtually ignoring terrorism and radical Islam, is a gross disservice to members of The United Methodist Church and to the wider public."
IRD is an ecumenical alliance of US Christians with the goal to reform mainline churches' social witness to align with what they believe is in accordance with biblical and historical Christian teachings.
Secretary of State Rice also chastised Gaza's Hamas leadership for not taking action against its militants and sparking the latest outbreak in fighting during the sensitive Mideast peace talks.
"Hamas, which in effect holds the people of Gaza hostage in their hands, is now trying to make the path to a Palestinian state hostage to them," Rice said, according to CNN. "We cannot permit that to happen."
On the line is the historic Israeli-Palestinian peace talk forged by the Bush administration in November to reconcile the two long-time and bitter foes before Bush steps down from office. The two sides agreed that they will negotiate a peace treaty, which includes the creation of a Palestinian state, aimed to be completed by the end of 2008.
Abbas represents all Palestinians in the peace talks despite the fact that Hamas now controls the Gaza Strip after its military coup last year. Abbas and his pro-Western government Fatah party control the West Bank.
The United States, Israel, and many Western governments consider Hamas a terrorist group because it refuses to acknowledge Israel's right to exist and continues to attack its neighbour.
Even after Israel's recent counterattack, rockets from Gaza continue to be launched into Israel with at least 11 missiles hitting the country on Wednesday. Israel said it would continue its military attack on militants and Hamas in Gaza while continuing peace talks with West Bank Palestinian leaders.
"We will continue to struggle in order to reduce to nil the threat that is upsetting the quality of life of residents of the south," Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said last week, according to CNN.
He described the Palestinian attacks on Israel as an "almost daily war".
"This may not always be loved but it is an important part of counterterrorist activity," Olmert contended.
WCC's Kobia urged churches and Christians "to speak out for the people of Gaza now and join in an international initiative to promote peace in the weeks ahead".
The WCC Central Committee invites member churches to join in a week of International Church Action for Peace in Palestine and Israel on June 4 -10, 2008. All churches are invited to join churches in Jerusalem and Bethlehem in a worldwide prayer for peace on Sunday, June 8, 2008.
