Church leaders warn of a 'systematic attempt' to drive Christians out of Jerusalem and the Holy Land

• Church leaders in Jerusalem spoke out against attacks against Christians across Jerusalem and the Holy Land.
• They said "fringe radical groups" were responsible for physical assaults and the vandalizing of churches.

Church leaders in Jerusalem warned that Christians had become the target of "frequent and sustained attacks by fringe radical groups" across the Holy Land in a strongly-worded statement.

The Patriarchs and Heads of Local Churches in Jerusalem pointed to "countless incidents" of physical and verbal assaults and the vandalizing of holy sites and churches.

In March of this year, the Romanian church monastery in Jerusalem was vandalized and its entrance set on fire. It was the fourth such attack on the monastery in a month, Daily Sabah reported.

No assailants were identified, but The Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land said in a statement that authorities suspected "religious Orthodox Jews."

In the statement last week, church leaders warned that the attacks appeared to be part of a "systematic attempt to drive the Christian community out of Jerusalem and other parts of the Holy Land."

The Holy Land encompasses the modern State of Israel, the Palestinian territories, and parts of neighboring countries.

The area includes religious sites considered holy by Jews, Christians, Muslims, and Druze people.

Church leaders warned that radical groups continue to "acquire strategic property" in the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem with the goal of diminishing the Christian presence.

They said these groups use "underhanded dealings and intimidation tactics" to evict residents from their homes.

The population of Christians in the Holy Land has steadily declined over the years.

In 1922, Christians made up about 10% of the population of the Holy Land. By 2019, that had declined to about 2%, archbishops writing in The Times said.

Justin Welby the Archbishop of Canterbury, the principal leader of the Church of England, and Hosam Naoum, the Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem, wrote that "someone lit a fire in the Church of All Nations in the Garden of Gethsemane, the place where Jesus prayed the night before he was crucified."

Thet added that Christians in the region "are too often obscured and even forgotten amid the competing perceptions of the geopolitics of the Middle East."

In the statement last week, Jerusalem church leaders highlighted the value brought by Christians to the religion, both socially and economically.

They said that the small population of Christians contributed "a disproportionate amount" of educational, health, and humanitarian services in communities throughout the region.

They also pointed to a recent report by the University of Birmingham, which found that Christian pilgrimage and tourism contribute $3bn to the Israeli economy.

The leaders thanked the Israeli government for their efforts to protect Christians, including facilitating millions of pilgrims to visit holy sites.

However, they said it was a matter of "grave concern" that "this national commitment is betrayed by the failure of local politicians, officials, and law enforcement agencies to curb the activities of radical groups."

To remedy this, they said authorities should deal with radical groups in Jerusalem and should discuss the ​​creation of a special Christian cultural and heritage zone to safeguard the integrity of the Christian Quarter in Old City Jerusalem.

Insider reached out to the Israeli embassy in London for comment but did not immediately receive a reply.