Church leaders within the Holy Land have accused the authorities of distorting the reality and of failing to handle human rights violations of their response to a different attack believed to be by extremist Israeli settlers on Taybeh, a Christian town within the West Bank.
The latest attack took place throughout the night of 27 to twenty-eight July. Attackers set fire to cars and sprayed what church leaders called “hateful” graffiti. Local sources indicate that the attackers were Israeli settlers. While some Israeli sources dispute this, they’ve thus far did not indicate who conducted the attacks if it weren’t the settlers.
Israeli settlers were accused of carrying out a previous attack on 7 July, when the fifth century Church of Saint George was threatened by nearby fires. The church’s cemetery was reportedly damaged within the incident.
Settlers have also been accused of disregarding the rights and property of those living in Taybeh, for instance by reportedly destructively grazing their livestock within the olive groves upon which the locals depend for his or her livelihoods.
Responding to this latest attack, the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem issued an announcement saying, “Several vehicles were set ablaze, and hateful graffiti was sprayed—an unambiguous act of intimidation directed at a peaceful and faithful community rooted within the land of Christ.”
The church leaders said that the attack was not an isolated incident and condemned Israeli police for less than talking about property damage and failing to recognise the broader campaign of abuse.
“These omissions distort the reality and fail to handle violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, including the proper to spiritual freedom and the protection of cultural heritage,” they said.
“Of additional concern is the reactionary disinformation campaign by Israeli settler-affiliated groups, launched in response to recent diplomatic visits to Taybeh.”
The patriarchs accused such groups of attempting to discredit victims and to whitewash the behaviour of the perpetrators.
The statement called upon the Israeli government to make sure that there may be equality before the law and that those guilty of the attacks be delivered to justice.
Similar calls were made following the primary attack, with questions asked as to why Israeli police apparently did nothing in response to emergency calls. As things stand, it seems that nobody has been arrested in reference to the 7 July attack.
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