The Anglican Church and the UK government have expressed ‘dismay’ at an attack on an historic Christian cemetery close to Jerusalem’s walled Old City.
More than 30 graves at the Protestant Cemetery on Mount Zion were desecrated. Crosses were broken and headstones toppled and smashed. Jewish extremists have been blamed for the vandalism.
‘We have noticed that hatred speech and hatred crimes are on the rise,’ Anglican Archbishop Hosam Naoum said. Standing next to the vandalised grave of the second Anglican bishop of Jerusalem, Samuel Gobat, he said there had been a recent increase in spitting at Christians and attacks on their holy sites.
Naoum added: ‘This is only an indication that we are not in a place where people can tolerate each other or accept each other. We see more exclusion, more segregation and that is what really grieves us in this city of Jerusalem.’
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, called the desecration of the graves ‘a blasphemous act’ and expressed hope that those responsible would be brought swiftly to justice. ‘As we continue to pray for peace in the Holy Land, I stand with Archbishop Hosam Naoum and other Jerusalem church leaders in calling for respect, protection, equality and justice for its Christian community – who are the living stones of the church,’ he added.
In a Tweet, the British Consulate in Jerusalem said: ‘This is the latest in a string of attacks against Christians and their property in and around the Old City. The perpetrators of religiously motivated attacks should be held accountable.’
The Israeli ministry of foreign affairs also condemned the vandalism at the cemetery. ‘This immoral act is an affront to religion and the perpetrators should be prosecuted,’ it Tweeted.
Security camera footage shows two young men carrying out the attack.
