NEW YORK, May 9, 2026 (WAFA) – Former UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, Michael Lynk, said that targeting Christians in Palestine is primarily linked to the fact that they are Palestinians, adding that the Israeli government seeks to erase Palestinians, including Christians, while warning of an escalation in attacks by colonists against Palestinian Christians.

In a press statement on Saturday, Lynk noted that the investigation into the assault on a nun in Jerusalem only began after international pressure, adding that colonists and Israeli occupation forces have intensified their attacks on Palestinian Christian communities, places of worship, and villages in recent years, according to the vast majority of documented human rights reports on the issue.

He further explained that Jerusalem witnessed this year, for the first time in centuries, the prevention of the performance of one of the Christian community’s religious rituals.

Lynk said this comes within the framework of Israel’s efforts to deepen its occupation of Palestinian territories amid the absence of international accountability and impunity.

The former UN official described international reactions to the situation of Palestinian Christians as limited, despite the wide presence of Christians around the world.

Regarding colonial settlements in the occupied Palestinian Territory, Lynk affirmed that they constitute a violation of international law, adding that international humanitarian and criminal law considers the establishment of civilian settlements in occupied territory a war crime.

T.R.