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The Palestinian Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Dr. Tamer Almassri, strongly condemns the Israeli authorities’ discriminatory policies against Palestinian Christians during the Easter celebrations. He described the restrictions imposed on worshippers, the denial of access to churches, and the violence against church leaders and worshippers as a blatant violation of the fundamental right to freedom of worship.
For the second consecutive year, Palestinian Christians in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, and Jerusalem were forced to mark Easter under punishing conditions and the shadow of Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza, with Israeli forces clamping down on their rights to practice their faith.
Ambassador Almassri said this year, the Israeli authorities have reached a new low, transforming the Old City of occupied Jerusalem into a de facto military zone, suffocating the very essence of Easter celebrations with checkpoints erected throughout the area and its alleyways leading to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, severely restricted access for worshippers during one of the most significant Christian observances of the year.
“This blatant disregard for the religious freedom of Palestinians is a stark reminder of the Israeli occupation’s oppressive nature. The deliberate denial of entry to the Apostolic Delegate and Vatican Ambassador to Palestine, Archbishop Adolfo Tito Yllana, is an egregious violation of diplomatic protocols and international conventions, demonstrating a profound disrespect for the international community and religious freedom.
“The assault on church leaders and pastors, as well as the despicable behaviour of extremist Israeli settlers who spat and mocked Christian worshippers, demonstrate the depths of hatred and intolerance that the Israeli occupation embodies. The international community’s continued silence in the face of these discriminatory and repressive measures is utterly unacceptable. The fundamental right to freedom of worship in Jerusalem for both Palestinian Christians and Muslims must be unequivocally upheld,” the Palestinian Envoy said.
He added that the extremist government of Netanyahu and its fascist allies have laid bare their sinister agenda of complete Judaization of Jerusalem, the erasure of its international, Muslim, and Christian identities, and the imposition of a single-religion state.
The state of Palestine calls on all people of conscience, religious leaders, and the international community to unequivocally condemn these discriminatory policies against Christians in Jerusalem and the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
Dr Almassri said the world must hold Israel accountable for its violations of international law, human rights, and religious freedom, and decisive action is urgently required to protect the Palestinian people and preserve the sanctity of Jerusalem for all faiths.
Meanwhile, the ongoing genocidal war on Gaza has entered a new deadly phase, with Israeli forces killing 1,827 Palestinians and wounding 4,828 since March 18, 2025. The displacement of over 420,000 people, the collapse of the health system, and the reliance of two million Palestinians on humanitarian aid, which is being blocked, are a humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions. The total number of Palestinians killed since the beginning of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza stands at 51,201, with the majority being women and children, while 116,869 have been injured.
