Church official warns that Israeli measures over land and school restrictions threaten Christian continuity in Jerusalem.

As pressure grows on the Christian presence in Jerusalem, George Akroush, director of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem’s Development Office and head of the Church’s social and educational projects in the Holy Land, is warning that a series of Israeli measures affecting both land and education could reshape the city’s Christian community and threaten its geographic and social continuity.

Israeli settlers escalate their incursions into Taybeh, the West Bank’s last fully Christian town, raising concerns over further land appropriation. The parish priest, Father Bashar Fawadleh, appeals for international intervention, as residents face mounting restrictions and call for peace, justice, and protection.

Amid the continuing Israeli attacks in Lebanon, radical Jewish settlers have increased violent attacks on Palestinian civilians and villages in the West Bank.

West Bank – SIR News Agency – Translated and Edited by Nabd El-Haya

Taybeh, the only fully Christian town in the West Bank, was subjected to a new attack on the morning of Thursday, March 19, 2026, by Israeli settlers targeting public property, a concrete factory, and a quarry.

Message from the Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Sami El-Yousef:

The war started on Saturday, about twelve days ago, and it was significant in the way it developed in a very short period of time. All of sudden we have sirens, blurring and we are being directed to go to shelters. Rockets and planes flying over heads and it was a very dramatic development in a very short period of time.   

The documentary produced by KTO Télévision Catholique titled « La guerre n’aura pas le dernier mot » (War Doesn’t Have the Last Word) traces the life of Christian communities in Gaza Strip, Jenin, and Taybeh during the recent war on Gaza, presenting testimonies from those who remain as well as from members of the community who now reside outside Gaza.  

Vatican - Pope Leo XIV has expressed his sorrow over the death of a priest in southern Lebanon, a victim of an Israeli bombing on Monday, March 9.

Lebanon - A tragic incident has shaken ecclesiastical circles and the Christian community in southern Lebanon, as Father Pierre El Raii, parish priest of Saint George Church in Qlayaa, was martyred after being injured during artillery shelling while helping the wounded and assisting the injured.

Details of the Attack

Taybeh – West Bank – Spanish News Agency (EFE) – Patricia Martínez Sastre – Translated by “Nabd El-Haya”

The streets of Taybeh, the only entirely Christian-majority town in the West Bank, are nearly empty. Not a single restaurant remains open, job opportunities are scarce, and Israeli settlers spread fear on an almost daily basis. A large portion of its approximately 1,200 residents — especially young people — are now considering leaving.

Leo Morawiecki - The Tablet

In Jerusalem, pilgrim sites and businesses once again fell silent against the intermittent sound of air raid sirens and Israeli air defence systems intercepting Iranian missiles overhead.

Israel’s war with Iran will encourage settler attacks on Palestinian communities, according to a Catholic priest in the only Christian town in the Holy Land.

By Fr. Bashar Fawadleh*