The Church in Jerusalem is calling for respect for the sanctity of life after the Israeli Knesset recently approved a law permitting the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners.

Amid growing controversy over the Israeli Knesset’s recent approval of a law permitting the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners, the Catholic Church in the Holy Land is raising its voice in defense of the sanctity of life and the inherent dignity of every human person.

In AsiaNews, Fr Ielpo describes the run-up to Easter amidst the war in the Gulf and the closure of the holy sites. He condemns the violence perpetrated by settlers in the West Bank: “Serious acts against people who want to live in peace”. His account of southern Lebanon, which he has just visited. Prayer as an ‘essential’ path to a peace ‘that comes from above’. An appeal to Christians worldwide to ‘carry this yet another cross together’.

“The aggressions against Christians in the West Bank are multiplying,” Auxiliary Bishop William Shomali of Jerusalem told “EWTN News Nightly.”

Christians in the West Bank continue to face an onslaught of aggressions by Israeli settlers, threatening their presence in the region, according to Auxiliary Bishop William Shomali of Jerusalem.

Church official warns that Israeli measures over land and school restrictions threaten Christian continuity in Jerusalem.

As pressure grows on the Christian presence in Jerusalem, George Akroush, director of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem’s Development Office and head of the Church’s social and educational projects in the Holy Land, is warning that a series of Israeli measures affecting both land and education could reshape the city’s Christian community and threaten its geographic and social continuity.

Israeli settlers escalate their incursions into Taybeh, the West Bank’s last fully Christian town, raising concerns over further land appropriation. The parish priest, Father Bashar Fawadleh, appeals for international intervention, as residents face mounting restrictions and call for peace, justice, and protection.

Amid the continuing Israeli attacks in Lebanon, radical Jewish settlers have increased violent attacks on Palestinian civilians and villages in the West Bank.

West Bank – SIR News Agency – Translated and Edited by Nabd El-Haya

Taybeh, the only fully Christian town in the West Bank, was subjected to a new attack on the morning of Thursday, March 19, 2026, by Israeli settlers targeting public property, a concrete factory, and a quarry.

Message from the Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Sami El-Yousef:

The war started on Saturday, about twelve days ago, and it was significant in the way it developed in a very short period of time. All of sudden we have sirens, blurring and we are being directed to go to shelters. Rockets and planes flying over heads and it was a very dramatic development in a very short period of time.   

The documentary produced by KTO Télévision Catholique titled « La guerre n’aura pas le dernier mot » (War Doesn’t Have the Last Word) traces the life of Christian communities in Gaza Strip, Jenin, and Taybeh during the recent war on Gaza, presenting testimonies from those who remain as well as from members of the community who now reside outside Gaza.  

Vatican - Pope Leo XIV has expressed his sorrow over the death of a priest in southern Lebanon, a victim of an Israeli bombing on Monday, March 9.

Lebanon - A tragic incident has shaken ecclesiastical circles and the Christian community in southern Lebanon, as Father Pierre El Raii, parish priest of Saint George Church in Qlayaa, was martyred after being injured during artillery shelling while helping the wounded and assisting the injured.

Details of the Attack