88 ATTACKS AGAINST PALESTINIAN CHRISTIANS RECORDED SINCE START OF YEAR

Thu 11 June 2026:

The Religious Freedom Data Centre said on Wednesday that attacks and harassment targeting Palestinian Christians and their religious sites have increased.

The centre documented more than 88 incidents against Christians since the beginning of this year, including 63 cases during the second quarter alone. It said the figures suggest that 2026 could set a new record, surpassing the 181 incidents recorded last year.

According to a report presented in Jerusalem, the violations included spitting incidents, verbal abuse, vandalism of cemeteries, gravestones, statues and crosses, as well as racist graffiti and the desecration of Christian religious sites.

Most of the incidents were concentrated in Jerusalem’s Old City, Mount Zion and the area surrounding the Armenian Patriarchate.

During a conference in Occupied Jerusalem where the report was presented, human rights activists and lawyers criticised the performance of Israeli police in handling complaints submitted by Christians.

Uri Narov, head of the legal department at the Israeli Religious Action Centre, said most cases are closed without results. He noted that 19 out of 25 complaints filed by the centre between 2012 and 2021 were closed for various reasons, including failure to identify suspects or no offense had occurred. 

Representatives of Catholic churches also presented a series of attacks targeting religious institutions and church-owned property. These included the toppling of stone crosses, damage to vehicles, and the throwing of stones, eggs and rubbish into monasteries and Christian guesthouses.

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Attacks against Palestinian Christians are multifaceted, encompassing violence, restrictions on religious freedom, and property damage. Incidents are perpetrated by Israeli forces, extremist groups, and settlers in the occupied territories.

Palestinian Christian towns and religious sites in the West Bank frequently face aggression from Israeli settlers and military blockades.

• Taybeh: As the last remaining entirely Christian town in the West Bank, Taybeh has been the target of repeated incursions. In a severe June 2026 incident, settlers deliberately set nearby hills ablaze, fired live ammunition at residents, and physically assaulted locals and civil defense firefighters who were attempting to extinguish the fire. 
• Bethlehem: The historic Christian-majority city of Bethlehem is largely encircled by the separation wall and expanding Israeli settlements, which has strangled its economy and curtailed free movement. 
• Beit Sahour: Settlers, backed by military escorts, have advanced onto historically Christian hilltops to establish illegal settlement outposts.