Netanyahu’s Effort to Deflect Allegations of Christian Harassment by Israeli Extremists
The Israeli prime minister has portrayed Israel as a protector of Christians despite reported attacks and acts of humiliation in Jerusalem and southern Lebanon.
Benjamin Netanyahu has described Israel as a protector of Christians and dismissed international criticism as part of a campaign against Israel. The claims contrast with incidents cited by IRNA, The Times of Israel and The Wall Street Journal, including alleged damage to a statue of Jesus in southern Lebanon, an attack on a church in Jerusalem, and harassment and threats directed at Christians in the Old City.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has again presented Israel and its military as defenders of minorities, while rejecting international criticism over alleged crimes and harassment targeting Christians. According to an IRNA report citing The Times of Israel, Netanyahu said on Wednesday that Israel protects Christians and that Christians, in turn, support Israel.
Netanyahu described worldwide condemnation of Israel’s conduct in the Middle East as a “global campaign against Israel and the Israeli army.” He said that, as part of this campaign, Israel and its soldiers were being portrayed not only as perpetrators of war crimes but also as persecutors of minorities.
The remarks were delivered at a ceremony described as commemorating Christian soldiers serving in the Israeli regime. During the event, Netanyahu called Israel an “island of progress, an island of tolerance and an island of security.” He also emphasized what he described as Israel’s commitment to protecting Syria’s Druze community.
His portrayal of Israel as a safe and tolerant environment for Christians contrasts with several incidents cited in the report. One example involved images published in Farvardin of the current year that reportedly showed an Israeli soldier damaging a statue of Jesus Christ in southern Lebanon. The report presented the incident as a prominent example of vandalism and an attack against Christians.
Another incident reportedly occurred the previous month, when a group of Israeli extremists attacked a church in occupied Jerusalem and carried out insulting and desecrating acts. Despite such incidents, Netanyahu has claimed that Israel is the only place in the Middle East where the Christian community has flourished and continued to grow.
The Wall Street Journal also reported on 11 Mordad on harassment of Christians in Jerusalem, including incidents in which Israeli extremists allegedly spat toward them. According to the account cited by IRNA, a group of Israeli teenagers recently banged on the door of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Jerusalem’s Old City and threatened the Christians inside by saying they would spit at them.
The newspaper’s report said the teenagers described humiliating Christians—or, in their words, “idolaters”—as a religious duty, or mitzvah. One of the teenagers, who had wrapped an Israeli flag around himself, was quoted as saying: “We must hate them.”
Taken together, the incidents cited in the reporting raise questions about Netanyahu’s effort to define Israel as a protector of Christians while allegations of harassment, desecration and intimidation continue to be reported. The available account presents a sharp contrast between official claims of tolerance and security and testimonies describing hostility toward Christian communities and religious sites. The allegations and descriptions in this article are based on the cited reporting and have not been independently verified here.