Church of the Holy Sepulchre

PM Netanyahu: “I have instructed the relevant authorities that Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch, be granted full and immediate access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

Over the past several days, Iran h...

PM Netanyahu: “I have instructed the relevant authorities that Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch, be granted full and immediate access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

Over the past several days, Iran has repeatedly targeted the holy sites of all three monotheistic religions in Jerusalem with ballistic missiles. In one strike, missile fragments crashed meters from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

To protect worshippers, Israel asked members of all faiths to temporarily abstain from worshipping at the Christian, Muslim and Jewish holy sites in Jerusalem’s Old City.

Today, out of special concern for his safety, Cardinal Pizzaballa was asked to refrain from holding mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Even though I understand this concern, as soon as I learned about the incident with Cardinal Pizzaballa, I instructed the authorities to enable the Patriarch to hold services as he wishes.”

Israeli Prime Minister's Office:

In recent days, Iran has repeatedly targeted the holy sites of the three religions in Jerusalem with ballistic missiles.

In one instance, missile fragments fell just a few meters from the Church of the Hol...

Israeli Prime Minister's Office:

In recent days, Iran has repeatedly targeted the holy sites of the three religions in Jerusalem with ballistic missiles.

In one instance, missile fragments fell just a few meters from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. As a result, Israel temporarily asked worshippers of all religions not to pray at the holy sites in the Old City of Jerusalem to protect them.

Today, out of special concern for his safety, the Jerusalem Police prevented the Latin Patriarch from holding mass this morning at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Again, there was no malicious intent, only concern for his safety and the safety of his party.

However, in light of the sacred week before Easter for Christians worldwide, Israel's security forces are preparing a plan that will allow church leaders to pray at the holy site in the coming days.