Dangerous assault on church property and grave violation of the legal and historical status quo in occupied Jerusalem
RAMALLAH, June 19, 2026 (WAFA) – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates strongly condemned the Israeli occupation authorities’ seizure of land belonging to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem in the town of Silwan in occupied Jerusalem on June 15, 2026.
The ministry said the seizure was accompanied by the expulsion of the Patriarchate’s representative from the site, the confiscation of equipment, the uprooting of trees, and the fencing off of the land with gates and barriers.
It condemned the move as a flagrant violation of the sanctity of church property and a direct assault on the established religious and historical ownership rights of the Palestinian people and their global religious heritage in the holy city.
In a statement, the ministry stressed that the land, officially registered in the Patriarchate’s name and adjacent to a historic monastery containing religious and archaeological landmarks of significant historical and heritage value, is guaranteed legal protection under international law, particularly international humanitarian law, which prohibits the confiscation or seizure of private and religious property in occupied territories and criminalizes any infringement upon it or any forced alteration of its status or character.
The ministry warned that the attack forms part of a systematic policy aimed at taking control of church properties and altering the historical, religious, and demographic character of occupied Jerusalem, including through targeting the indigenous Christian presence, which has long constituted an integral component of the city’s identity and serves as a key witness to the Palestinian presence and its deep-rooted civilization in the land of Palestine.
The ministry stressed that these illegal and unilateral measures do not create any legal rights for the occupation and do not alter the legal and historical status of East Jerusalem as occupied Palestinian land.
It added that all annexation, confiscation, and seizure measures are null and void under international law and carry no legal validity.
The ministry held the Israeli occupation authorities fully responsible for the attack and its consequences, calling for an immediate halt to all arbitrary measures targeting church properties, the restoration of the status quo ante, and the guarantee of unrestricted access to Christian lands and holy sites without restrictions or interference.
It also called on the international community to assume its legal and moral responsibilities and take urgent action to halt these violations, provide international protection for Christian and Islamic holy sites in occupied Jerusalem, strengthen the international presence on the ground in the city, and hold the occupation authorities accountable for their ongoing systematic violations.
T.R.
