Declaration comes a week after cardinal was barred from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulcher; prime minister intervened to grant access
The Prime Minister of Israel, (Likud, right), said this Sunday (April 5, 2026) that, in the region, only the country protects the Christian community. The declaration, in an Easter message dedicated to “Christian friends in Israel, the United States and around the world.”
The Prime Minister stated that “Christians are persecuted throughout the Middle East, in Syria, Lebanon, Nigeria, Turkey” and elsewhere. “But in our region, only Israel protects our Christian community, which is growing and prospering”he wrote.
Netanyahu’s message comes a week after Israeli police forces entered Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa into the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, in Jerusalem, during Palm Sunday. The episode provoked reactions from governments in several countries, .
Shortly afterwards, the Israeli Prime Minister asked the police to allow the priest access to the place to hold religious celebrations.
At the time, Netanyahu said Iran was attacking “repeatedly” sacred sites. Therefore, Israel asked the population “temporarily refrain from attending Christian, Muslim and Jewish holy sites in the Old City” of Jerusalem, “to protect the faithful”.
The prime minister returned to talking about the attacks on Jerusalem in this Sunday’s message (April 5).
“As the U.S. and Israel stand firm against the Iranian regime and its terrorist allies, we continue to steadfastly protect freedom of worship for all religions, especially at this sacred time.”these.
“Even under fire, our commitment remains unwavering: to defend life, safeguard freedom and ensure that every believer can pray in peace”he declared.
