Al Quds churches reject occupation restrictions on Christians

AL QUDS-Thursday, the churches of occupied Jerusalem reaffirmed their rejection of all attempts by the Israeli occupation authorities to harass those who celebrate the "Sabbath of Light" in the occupied city of Jerusalem.

The Orthodox Church states, in a statement, that "this week is Holy Week, the holiest week for Christians, and the celebration of Holy Saturday ceremonies, during which believers witness the overflowing of the holy light, takes place regularly in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher for almost 2000 years".

He added that the occupation authorities "imposed unreasonable, unjustified and unprecedented restrictions on access to the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre", underlining that "he will conduct the ceremony as usual, for two thousand years now, despite these restrictions".

In turn, the Presidential High Committee for Church Affairs in Palestine has invited "our Christian people to participate massively in the activities of the Saturday of Light, which have been known for thousands of years, despite the measures of the occupation" .

The committee condemned, in a statement issued by its chairman, Ramzi Khoury, "the obstacles and restrictions imposed by the occupation government on the Holy City as Holy Saturday and the Glorious Day of Resurrection approached."

He added: "Freedom of worship is a right, and we don't expect permission from anyone to practice religious rites in our mosques and churches and in our capital, occupied Jerusalem." Yesterday, Wednesday, the "Christian-Islamic Organization for Support of Jerusalem and the Holy Places" (affiliated with the Palestinian Authority) condemned the occupation authorities' decision to cancel hundreds of permits previously issued to Palestinian Christians in the Gaza Strip , to access the city of Jerusalem and practice their religious rites at Easter.