How church land became Israel’s new battleground in Jerusalem
East Jerusalem - On 15 June 2026, officials from the Jerusalem Municipality, accompanied by Israeli police, raided property belonging to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem in the neighbourhood of Silwan. The Israeli authorities forcibly removed the church land’s caretaker, tore down equipment, uprooted trees, and installed a fence. “The incident constitutes an unlawful and illegitimate seizure of established Church property in the heart of Jerusalem,” the Jerusalem Patriarchate said in a statement, emphasising it “sets a dangerous precedent for Church rights in Jerusalem.”
This entry is original published by The New Arab.
