Yisca Harani: Israeli Jews must speak out against anti-Christian violence
The founder of the Religious Freedom Data Center views settler attacks as a “disturbing development”. Israeli ministers and police legitimising it is worrying. A Judeo-centric ideology has “taken root”, but minority rights are not a “marginal issue”. On Monday, the patriarchs and heads of the Churches of Jerusalem will visit Taybeh in “solidarity”.
Milan (AsiaNews) – Yisca Harani is an Israeli activist. In June 2023, she founded the Religious Freedom Data Center (RFDC), an independent body that documents the escalation of incidents in Israel, with a particular focus on Jerusalem.
“Speaking of peace and coexistence may sound naïve or distant right now — but the only way to preserve even the slightest hope for a future of shared life between Jews and Palestinians, and among Jews, Christians, and Muslims, is to continue doing the work we’re doing today,” she said, speaking to AsiaNews.
About “90 per cent of these incidents would have gone entirely unnoticed were it not for us – Jewish Israeli citizens – who monitor them, document them, and file police complaints. We have taken responsibility. And that matters, especially here in the Middle East, where in many neighboring countries, people are silenced when they speak against their own governments.”
For her, this “is our problem. We may feel hijacked by it, but we are also the ones who must expose it, define it, look it in the eye, and confront it.”
Referring to 7 October 2023 and Hamas's attack on Israel, a day that marked the recent history of the entire region, the activist describes wounds that “remain deeply visible” in a already “fractured” society.
The RFDC, founded at Harani's initiative, largely documents incidents within Israeli territory, not the West Bank. In fact, she explained, "the psychological and political boundaries between the two are blurred”.
What has been happening recently, including in Taybeh, reflects a "complete erosion of restraint, legality, and accountability – with clear government backing.”
This represents, the expert and scholar warns, "a disturbing development" not only for those in opposition, but "even for settlers alarmed by the lawlessness and ideological extremism of the young people in the hills," who "do not enjoy widespread support even among the settlers themselves."
“The most troubling aspect, however, is that this behavior is effectively legitimized by the backing of key political figures: the Minister of National Security (Itamar Ben-Gvir), the Prime Minister, and by extension, the army. That is the core of the problem.”
In recent days, an escalation of attacks has affected the West Bank village of Taybeh, a village of approximately 1,500 residents, located 30 km north of Jerusalem and east of Ramallah. With its three churches, it is famous for being the only village entirely inhabited by Christians.
The latest and most emblematic incident occurred on Monday, when pro-occupation fanatics set fire to the cemetery and the historic 5th century Church of St George (Al-Khadr), one of the oldest religious sites in Palestine.
Among the residents – more than 600 Roman Catholics, plus Greek Orthodox and Melkite Greek Catholics – there is deep concern for the future of a community known since the Gospels, when it was called "Ephraim", where Jesus retreated before his Passion.
In response to the violence, Greek Orthodox, Greek Catholic, and Latin parish priests issued a statement condemning incidents that "threaten the security and stability" of Christians, as well as undermining "the dignity of its inhabitants" and even the very "sacredness" of the Holy Land.
Through their statement, Frs Daoud Khoury, Jack-Nobel Abed, and Bashar Fawadleh sought to lift the veil of silence and impunity covering the violence by Jewish settlers in the Occupied Territories as well as in Israel against Arabs, Bedouin communities, and religious minorities.
These attacks began well before 7 October 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel and started the conflict in Gaza. However, the atrocities in Gaza – which did not spare civilians, including children – and the "12-Day War" with Iran have ended up eclipsing the issue, leaving the field open to settlers and extremists with the approval of Israeli authorities.
These violations, the parish priests stress, are not just a “provocation”, because they come with "direct damage" to the olive groves, which represent an "essential source of income,” while farmers are prevented “from accessing their lands”.
The patriarchs and heads of the Churches of Jerusalem have issued a plea. In a show of solidarity, they will travel to Taybeh and Ramallah next Monday, along with diplomats, ending with a press conference at the Church of St George.
Yisca Harani’s RFDC has confirmed the ongoing violence, documenting more than 50 cases in April-June of this year in "Incidents Against Christians in Israel," a recently released report. Specifically, in the Holy City, at least 50 per cent of the incidents occurred in the Armenian Quarter with clergy, priests, and laypeople targeted.
Other hotspots include Jaffa Gate, David Street (25 per cent), and the Via Dolorosa (13 per cent). The vast majority (78 per cent) involved spitting, followed by verbal abuse (8 per cent), vandalism (4 per cent), and trespassing and desecration of sacred places.
The victims include Armenian, Franciscan, Orthodox, and Catholic clergy, as well as civilians, while attacks occur during processions, religious services, or when clergymen wear cassocks and people carry religious objects.
Speaking about Israeli society, the activist describes a reality that is " profoundly divided – not necessarily along religious versus secular lines, but rather politically between the right and the center-left," with the centre "excluded" from power.
Those who feel excluded believe that they represent “roughly half of the population,” while “many on the political right are firmly convinced that they represent the true majority and that their victory was the legitimate outcome of a democratic process.”
“This dual perception – each side believing it could win again – fuels tension and alienation. Amid this crisis of trust, civil society has stepped in.”
There is also a "psychosocial process" within Israeli society over the past 30 years, Harani noted, driven by Netanyahu and the right, who have extolled "Jewish-centric discourse."
They have emphasised “Jewish values and identity,” she warns, which have given rise to "an ideology of Jewish supremacy that has, by now, taken root.”
In analysing the recent attacks on Taybeh, she does not see "an anti-Christian agenda," because “the settlers who carry out such violence are driven by a broader vision of territorial domination and messianic nationalism – not by a specific hostility" toward the religious minority.
“That said, the impact on the Christian community is real and alarming” and is linked to “a dangerous pattern of lawlessness and ideological aggression in the West Bank.”
This violence is not “isolated or spontaneous,” but is clearly “emboldened — if not directly supported — by government policies and by ministers who give ideological cover to Jewish supremacist ideas.
“What we’re seeing is an effort to create a Jewish monopoly over the land, and anything — or anyone — standing in the way becomes a target, whether Bedouin, Palestinian, or Christian.”
Yisca Harani reserves a final thought for the Religious Freedom Data Center and other entities, whose presence today is “essential”.
“For Jewish Israelis, this is also a historic moment: We remember, painfully and vividly, what it means to be a persecuted minority.”
“Now, as a majority, we have the chance – and the responsibility – to act differently. Unfortunately, decades of education shaped by exclusivist narratives have led to increasing extremism, framing Jews as perpetually under threat, even when in power.”
“I grew up in Jerusalem over 60 years ago. There was always tension, but there was also coexistence. What we see today is a dramatic rise in intolerance, rooted in a failure — or refusal — to teach the values of kindness and pluralism.”
“I believe most Israeli Jews – perhaps 90 per cent – have no idea these incidents are taking place,” she explained. “That is precisely why organizations like the Religious Freedom Data Center are so vital.
“We don’t only document violations — we raise awareness within Israeli society and internationally, and we insist that the rights of minorities, including Christians, are not a marginal issue, but a measure of who we are as a society.”
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15/01/2024 19:24
