A holy site of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem was once again targeted by extremists, with reports on Monday stating that a group of roughly 50 Israeli religious extremists broke through a gate and railing and forced their way into the chapel on the Hill of St. Zion.
According to a statement issued by the Patriarchate, the extremists desecrated the interior of the church and even threatened a guard, before he managed to escape and call police.
The Patriarchate of Jerusalem strongly protested against this unacceptable behavior and stressed that it will “…consider all the possibilities to attain justice for its rights and personnel”.
The complaint to Israeli police was filed by Metropolitan Isychios of Kapitolias, and by an eyewitness to the incident, Archimandrite Fr. Matthew.
The latter also demanded that police make every effort to find the vandals and bring them to justice, especially ahead of the celebration of the Holy Pentecost next Sunday and the Feast of the Holy Spirit on Monday.