Police officials in Israel arrested two teenagers, aged 15 and 16 years respectively, for allegedly spray-painting anti-Christian graffiti on the walls of Dormition Abbey in Jerusalem. Since the suspects are still minors, very few details about the investigation, including their identities, have been revealed. Both boys were remanded by Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court.
“The investigation is continuing in order to determine whether there is a connection between the vandalism of this church and other anti-Christian incidents in the Old City,” said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.
Mid last month, phrases like “May his name be obliterated”, “Go to hell” and “Death to the heathen Christians the enemies of Israel” were found crudely scrawled in red paint on the building’s walls. The incident went on to draw criticism from various quarters.
Citing former cases of vandalism at Dormition Abbey, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) issued a statement after both arrests, condemning the obnoxious graffiti on the church’s walls, where many believe Christ had his Last Supper.
“This church has been the target of repeated attacks,” said ADL Israel’s acting director Carole Nuriel and ADL’s director of interfaith affairs Rabbi David Fox Sandmel in a joint statement. “Sadly it is but one of an increasingly long list of religious sites, including churches, mosques and synagogues that have been vandalized by extremists who reject the value of religious freedom enshrined in Israel’s Declaration of Independence. … While we acknowledge Israel’s efforts to combat this extremism and call to bring the perpetrators to justice, we share the feeling expressed by many in the Christian community that enough is enough.”
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded in a similar manner, denouncing the act of vandalism and promising to crack down on the perpetrators.
“This is an action deserving of every condemnation; there is no place for actions like these,” he said. “Israel is a place where Christians and all other religions enjoy freedom of worship, and the only place in the Middle East where the Christian population is growing.”
Describing Dormition Abbey as an important place for interreligious dialog between Christianity and Judaism, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem expressed hope for the perpetrators to be arrested.
The suspects are being represented by a member of the right-wing Israeli Zionist legal aid group called Honenu, which is known to offer services to those who wish to protect and preserve their rights in receiving an unbiased judicial process. Heightened security continues to be deployed in the Old City to make sure such incidents of vandalism do not continue to take place there.
Photo Credits: Wikimedia
