Report finds growing trend of harassment of Christians in Israel

There was a “continued and expanding pattern of intimidation and aggression” against Christian clergy and Church property in 2025, according to an annual study released on Monday by an Israeli group.

The 155 documented incidents last year “reflect a persistent and worrying pattern in which both overt violence and everyday humiliations accumulate into a broader atmosphere of exclusion,” say the Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue’s report, titled “Attacks on Christians in Israel and East Jerusalem.”

Most of the incidents were physical attacks, mostly commonly spitting in the direction of easily identifiable Christian clergy.

“Clergy in areas such as Mount Zion and the Armenian Quarter report that harassment has become so routine that stepping outside can carry an almost certain risk of abuse,” according to the center.

There were 28 known cases of verbal harassment in 2025, more than double the number in the previous year.

While each incident is easily dismissed, says the report, “collectively, however, they are humiliating and exhausting, producing a climate in which Christians feel increasingly unwelcome, pressured to conceal their identity, and uncertain about the future of their communities.”

The report points to a worrying trend – “harassment and violence against Christians are continuing within a socio-political climate that is increasingly intolerant of diversity and more assertive in exclusivist national-religious claims.”

Clergy in Jerusalem told researchers that police are often “supportive and responsive,” but that most cases are closed without the perpetrators being held accountable.

Christians in Israel are also caught up in broader trends. Many live in Arab towns, where violent crime and murder are a spiraling problem. There has also been a rise in attacks by ultra-nationalist Jewish youth against Palestinians, some of whom are Christian.

Safety concerns during wars and new regulations in the wake of the 2021 Mount Meron tragedy often constrain central Christian ceremonies, and are seen by communities as being applied without sensitivity toward their needs.

The Rossing Center recommends new training for police, the creation of designated liaisons in the municipal and national governments, improved education about Christianity in the public Israeli system, and direct engagement with the national-religious community.