More than 30 Christian graves have been vandalized in a Jerusalem cemetery, some of them British Commonwealth war graves.
Tombstones were toppled, iconography was destroyed and graves were vandalized, in an incident that occurred around 3:20 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.
CCTV covering a part of the cemetery shows two youths carrying out the attack, at one point throwing chunks of marble at a notable grave and apparently targeting certain graves.
The Jerusalem Protestant Cemetery, on the grounds of the Jerusalem University College on Mount Zion, was founded in 1848 and maintained by local communities.
It contains the graves of 77 servicemen, four of whom died shortly after World War I, and 73 Palestinian Policemen who died during World War II.
It is also the burial place of many high-level Christian leaders, including Samuel Gobat, the former Bishop of Jerusalem.
Israeli police are investigating the violence and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission has said it will carry out damage assessments to begin repair work.
University president Oliver Hersey said in a statement: “The Mount Zion Police Department is working with Jerusalem College staff to identify two young men caught on security cameras throwing large pieces of marble crosses. to the headstones, in an effort to restore peace and security to those residing in the Mount Zion community.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke out against the increase in violence against Christians
In December 2021, the Archbishop of Canterbury and other senior Christian leaders spoke about increasing violence against Christians in Jerusalem, who had become “the target of frequent and sustained attacks by radical fringe groups.”
Their statement said the tactics were being used “in a systematic attempt to drive the Christian community out of Jerusalem and other parts of the Holy Land.”
Fewer than 100,000 Christians now live in the Old City, the site of The Last Supper and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher where Jesus was supposedly crucified.
