Netanyahu says Israel protecting worship, in Easter message after Holy Sepulchre uproar

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wishes “a blessed and joyful Easter” to Christians in Israel and abroad, stressing that Israel’s commitment to the freedom of worship is “unwavering.”

“Christians are persecuted across the Middle East, in Syria, Lebanon, Nigeria, Turkey and beyond,” he writes on X. “But in our region, Israel alone protects our Christian community which is growing and prospering.”

His message comes a week after Israeli police officers stopped the top Catholic figures in the region from reaching the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for Palm Sunday services, citing safety regulations during the ongoing war with Iran. After global condemnation, Netanyahu instructed the police to find an arrangement with the heads of churches in Jerusalem that would allow limited prayer services, which the sides succeeded in doing that evening.

“In this land where the story began, as missiles are fired at our capital, the holy city of Jerusalem, and as the US and Israel stand firm against the Iranian regime and its terror proxies,” he writes in English, “we continue to steadfastly protect the freedom of worship for all faiths, especially at this sacred time.”

“Even under fire, our commitment is unwavering: to defend life, to safeguard liberty, and to ensure that every believer can pray in peace.”