Christians Face ‘Persecution’ by Settlers

Anglican Church of Southern Africa Declares Israel ‘Apartheid’ Regime

Date: 04 October 2023 - 22:01

News ID: ۱۱۹۹۱۹

WEST BANK (Dispatches) – The Anglican Church of Southern Africa (ACSA) has declared the Zionist regime to be a apartheid, in comments that appear to be a rebuke for Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. Last month, the 67-year-old head of the worldwide Anglican communion refused to describe the Zionist regime as apartheid, brushing aside the broad consensus within the human rights community and a wealth of evidence concerning the occupying regime’s practice of apartheid.

“As people of faith who are distressed by the pain of the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza — and who long for security and a just peace — we can no longer ignore the realities on the ground,” said the South African Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town Thabo Makgoba.

When black South Africans who have lived under apartheid visit Israel, the parallels to apartheid are impossible to ignore

“Our hearts ache for our Christian brothers and sisters in Palestine, whose numbers include Anglicans but are rapidly declining. People of all faiths in South Africa have both a deep understanding of what it is to live under oppression, as well as experience of how to confront and overcome unjust rule by peaceful means,” he continued, before comparing Israel to South Africa under apartheid rule.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) in Al-Quds also said on Tuesday Christians face “persecution” by Zionist extremist groups amid regime inaction.

“We feel persecution against our community and religion,” WCC coordinator in Al-Quds Youssef Daher told Anadolu.

“There is a Jewish Israeli persecution, encouraged either by police negligence or by officials made by Israeli cabinet ministers,” he added.

Settlers Spit on Christians

A video emerged on Monday of settlers spitting on the ground as a group of Christians left a church in Al-Quds’ Old City.

“If the Israeli police were serious, it would not have allowed such incidents,” Daher said. “There is negligence by the [Zionist regime] authorities, and this encourages those extremists.”

Daher estimates the number of Palestinian Christians in Al-Quds at around 8,000.

He said Christians documented several assaults against churches in recent months.

“Churches filed complaints with the Israeli police, but nothing happened,” Daher added.

Also on Wednesday, Zionists were spotted spitting in the direction of Christians in occupied East Al-Quds, days after similar attacks, defended by the far-right minister as “not criminal”, led to widespread condemnation.

According to Al Araby TV, the latest incidents targeted Christian clergy in the Old City, where thousands of Zionists are participating in marches marking the week-long Sukkot holiday.

Itamar Ben Gvir, the regime’s cabinet minister, who oversees the police, said in an interview with Army Radio that spitting at Christians was “not a criminal case” and that not everything “justifies an arrest”.

He said the incidents were “deserving of every condemnation” but urged people to “stop slandering Israel”.

Ben Gvir had previously defended the act of spitting on Christians as “an ancient Jewish custom”.