A Palestinian presidential committee for church affairs on Wednesday condemned an Israeli seizure of land belonging to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in occupied East Jerusalem, calling it a “flagrant violation of international law.”
The Higher Presidential Committee for Church Affairs in Palestine said Israeli forces seized Church-owned land in the Silwan neighbourhood, removed a representative of the patriarchate from the site, confiscated equipment, uprooted trees and surrounded the area with fences and gates.
The move was part of a broader policy aimed at seizing Palestinian land, including private property, public land, religious endowments and church-owned assets, the committee said in a statement.
Targeting land registered to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate shows that Israeli confiscation policies extend to religious and historical properties, it added.
The statement underlined that the measures undermine claims of respect for freedom of worship and the preservation of the Christian presence in occupied East Jerusalem, while harming the city’s religious and cultural heritage.
It also linked the incident to what it described as a growing pattern of attacks against Muslim and Christian holy sites.
Early Wednesday, illegal Israeli settlers set fire to parts of two mosques in the villages of Jaljilya and Al-Mazra’a Al-Nubani, north of Ramallah, and sprayed Hebrew-language graffiti on their walls.
The committee urged churches worldwide, the UN, international organisations, and human rights groups to take practical steps to protect church properties as well as Muslim and Christian holy sites, and to hold those responsible accountable under international law.
Since October 8, 2023, at least 1,169 Palestinians have been killed, 12,666 injured, around 23,000 arrested, and 33,000 displaced in the occupied West Bank by Israeli attacks, according to official Palestinian figures.
