Attacks on Christians in Israel double, report says
Rights advocates called on Jerusalem authorities to cooperate in ensuring real freedom of religion.
The number of attacks on Christians in Israel has nearly doubled over the past three months. According to a study by the Religious Freedom Data Center (RFDC), from April to June 2026, human rights defenders recorded 83 cases of persecution, compared with 44 incidents at the start of the year.
Most violations – 56% – involved clergy, pilgrims, and holy sites being spat on, often openly and demonstratively in broad daylight. The peak of aggression coincided with Jewish holidays – Jerusalem Day and Shavuot – when the number of attacks reached as many as eight per day.
The main victims were monks and nuns, while the attackers often included children and teenagers whose parents openly encouraged them to insult Christian clergy.
Human rights defenders noted the growing brazenness of the perpetrators and a shift from verbal threats to direct physical violence. In one incident, a man knocked down and injured a nun on Mount Zion, after which RFDC volunteers began providing protective accompaniment for convent sisters on their daily routes.
The report also recorded cases of church signs being desecrated, online calls for the destruction of holy sites, and the systematic dumping of garbage on Christian properties.
Experts called on the Jerusalem municipality to end its policy of excluding Christians from the city’s public space and to work professionally with rights defenders to ensure genuine freedom of religion.
As the UOJ reported, Israeli settlers set fire to Christian homes in the ancient town of Taybeh.
