BETHLEHEM, Palestine

A Palestinian pastor has warned that Christians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip face potential extinction amid relentless Israeli assaults.

"For the second year in a row, we celebrate Easter in the shadow of genocide against the people of Gaza,” Rev. Munther Isaac, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem and Beit Sahour in the southern West Bank, told Anadolu in an interview.

“Palestine is still walking the path of sorrow, suffering from Israeli siege and apartheid policies. The same violence that killed Christ still exists in our land today.

"The people of Gaza and the church celebrate the holiday, hoping that the war will end, that light will triumph over darkness, and truth over falsehood. They endure the most difficult circumstances, with no food, no medicine, and a stifling Israeli blockade on Gaza. There are constant threats of forced displacement from the Strip."

For the second consecutive year, Palestinian Christians marked Easter on Sunday without joy or festivity as Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank entered their 19th month.

In Gaza, dozens of Christians gathered at the historic Saint Porphyrius Church, which was bombed by Israeli forces on Oct. 19, 2023, killing 18 displaced civilians sheltering inside.

In the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, Easter services were also stripped of celebration amid Israeli restrictions preventing Christians from reaching Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of the most sacred Christian sites.

Isolation

Rev. Isaac said Palestinian Christians in the West Bank are isolated from occupied East Jerusalem due to Israeli restrictions.

"Christians wish to visit Jerusalem, but there are obstacles to obtaining permits from the occupation. We say there should be no need to obtain permits because Jerusalem and Bethlehem are twin cities that cannot be separated, as is the reality today.

“We live in a state of extreme fear as we watch what is happening in Gaza while the Arab world and the entire world remain silent.”

The Palestinian pastor said that the Israeli restrictions and harassment of Christians aim to tighten Israel’s grip on Jerusalem.

"In some years, Israel has limited the number of worshippers in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. All this creates a sense of pain and sorrow because we cannot visit the Holy Sepulchre on Holy Saturday, in an Israeli attempt to tighten Israel’s grip on Jerusalem and holy sites.”

Christian migration

The Palestinian pastor appealed to all Christians worldwide to pay attention to Israeli violations in the occupied territories.

“Will anyone accept seeing Christianity diminishing in the Holy Land?” he asked.

"Unfortunately, what I see in Gaza indicates that the Christian presence there will end as a result of the genocide. I hope I’m wrong."

He warned that Christians are increasingly migrating from the West Bank due to Israeli restrictions.

There is "a real exodus now that has increased dramatically recently after the genocide, and has multiplied due to Israeli harassment and checkpoints, in addition to the economic situation, which is obvious to everyone.

“This all affects the Christian presence because our numbers are already small," he lamented.

Extinction

As for the Christian community in Gaza, Rev. Isaac said homes of Palestinian Christians in the enclave have either been destroyed or partially damaged.

"We must be realistic, unless the (Israeli) aggression, occupation, and apartheid separation end, I’m afraid that the future of all our youth will be in danger,” he warned.

Around 1,000 Christians live in the Gaza Strip out of a population of more than two million. About 70 percent belong to the Greek Orthodox Church, while the rest belong to the Latin Catholic Church.

The pastor said that Israel does not respect any red lines in the occupied Palestinian lands.

“I believe their message is clear: No church, no mosque, and no hospital can protect our people in Gaza. Their message is aimed at displacement or killing.

"If the situation continues, Israel will pursue its plan to displace the entire population of Gaza,” he said.

“The bombing of hospitals is a clear message that Israel is working to destroy all aspects of life to force everyone to leave the Strip. This is an implementation of the ethnic cleansing plan and a message that there is no safe place."

More than 51,200 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.