Palestinian Ambassador Tamer Almassri has publicly condemned Israel’s actions during the recent Easter celebrations, accusing the occupying authorities of systematically undermining the rights of Palestinian Christians.
According to Almassri, the increasingly restrictive measures imposed on worshippers, alongside the violent treatment of church leaders and communities, constitute a grave infringement on the universal right to religious freedom.
For the second year in a row, Palestinian Christians across Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem have faced severe limitations during Easter, as military operations and occupation-related barriers have disrupted their ability to celebrate a central religious tradition.
This year, the Old City of Jerusalem, home to some of Christianity’s most sacred sites, has been heavily militarized. Checkpoints, barricades, and an overwhelming military presence have significantly hindered access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, an act Almassri describes as deliberate suppression of faith-based observance.
In a particularly provocative move, Israeli authorities reportedly denied entry to Archbishop Adolfo Tito Yllana, the Vatican’s representative to Palestine. This breach of diplomatic norms has sparked outrage, raising concerns over Israel’s growing disregard for international protocols and the sanctity of religious institutions.
Almassri also drew attention to the harassment of Christian worshippers by extremist settlers and physical attacks against clergy members—incidents he says are indicative of the broader atmosphere of hostility fostered by the Israeli occupation.
The ambassador criticized the silence of the international community, arguing that failure to address these violations only emboldens further repression. He urged global leaders, religious figures, and civil society to stand in defense of the Christian and Muslim heritage of Jerusalem and to reject policies aimed at erasing its pluralistic character.
He warned that the current Israeli administration, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his far-right allies, is actively working to transform Jerusalem into a monolithic religious state by marginalizing its indigenous Palestinian identity and religious diversity.
As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens, with over 1,800 Palestinians killed and hundreds of thousands displaced since mid-March, Almassri emphasized the urgent need for international accountability. The cumulative death toll from the ongoing conflict has surpassed 51,000, with women and children among the most affected, and the healthcare infrastructure teetering on collapse.
Almassri’s statement is a call for decisive global action to protect religious freedom, to preserve Jerusalem’s inclusive legacy, and to address the worsening humanitarian disaster faced by Palestinians under siege.