Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli police had “no malicious intent” when they stopped the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to celebrate Palm Sunday mass.
“Today, out of special concern for his safety, Jerusalem police prevented the Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pizzaballa from holding mass this morning at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,” Mr Netanyahu said on X, reports RTE.
“Again, there was no malicious intent whatsoever, only concern for his safety and that of his party.”,
Israeli police had earlier blocked the Patriarch from marking Palm Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre “for the first time in centuries,” according to the Patriarchate, citing security concerns related to the Iran war, reports RTE.
Cardinal Pizzaballa and Friar Francesco Ielpo were stopped while walking to the church, which is built on the site where Christians believe Jesus was crucified and resurrected, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said.
“As a result, and for the first time in centuries, the Heads of the Church were prevented from celebrating the Palm Sunday Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,” it said in a statement, reports RTE.
Israeli police stated that all holy sites in Jerusalem’s Old City — including those significant to Christians, Muslims and Jews — have been closed to worshippers since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran, particularly locations without bomb shelters.
Police said they had refused a request from the Patriarchate to grant an exemption for Palm Sunday, reports RTE.
“The Old City and the holy sites constitute a complex area that does not allow access for large emergency and rescue vehicles, which significantly challenges response capabilities and poses a real risk to human life in the event of a mass casualty incident,” police said, reports RTE.
Kaja Kallas criticised the move, describing it as a “violation of religious freedom”, reports RTE.
“The decision by Israeli police to bar Jerusalem’s Latin Patriarch from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Palm Sunday constitutes a violation of religious freedom and long-standing protections governing holy sites,” she said, reports RTE.
“Freedom of worship in Jerusalem must be fully guaranteed, without exception, for all faiths. Jerusalem’s multi-religious character must be protected,” she added in a social media post, reports RTE.
Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the most significant period in the Christian calendar leading up to Easter.
Typically, the Old City would be crowded, with Roman Catholic worshippers passing through the large wooden doors of the Holy Sepulchre, reports RTE.
This year, however, Christians, Muslims and Jews have been unable to observe Easter, Ramadan or Passover in the usual way due to police restrictions.
Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque was largely empty during Ramadan, and only a small number of worshippers have visited Judaism’s Western Wall ahead of Passover, reports RTE.
Giorgia Meloni also criticised the police action, saying that preventing religious leaders from entering holy sites “constitutes an offence not only to believers but for every community that recognises religious freedom,” reports RTE.
Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he would summon Israel’s ambassador over the incident, reports RTE.
Emmanuel Macron condemned the move, saying it “adds to the worrying increase in violations of the status of the Holy Places in Jerusalem.”
Spokespeople for Israel’s Foreign Ministry and Mr Netanyahu did not immediately comment, reports RTE.
Residents of the Old City and religious officials said the enforcement of restrictions on worship has been inconsistent.
They noted that Muslim Waqf preachers were allowed access to Al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr, and that cleaners were permitted to enter the Western Wall area ahead of Passover to remove prayer notes, reports RTE.
Today, Franciscan friars and worshippers were also allowed into another shrine in the Old City, a short distance from the Holy Sepulchre, to mark Palm Sunday.
Farid Jubran, a spokesperson for the Patriarchate, said police had been informed the Mass would be held privately and behind closed doors, reports RTE.
“But still despite this communication they insisted on acting this way,” he said, reports RTE.
Earlier today, Pope Leo said God rejects the prayers of leaders who wage war and have “hands full of blood”, in unusually strong remarks.
Addressing tens of thousands in St Peter’s Square on Palm Sunday, the beginning of the holiest week for the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, he said Jesus cannot be used to justify war, reports RTE.
“This is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war,” Leo told crowds gathered in bright sunshine. (Jesus) does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: ‘Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood’,” he said, citing a bible passage, reports RTE.
Pope Leo did not name any specific leaders, but he has increased his criticism of the Iran war in recent weeks.
The pontiff, known for carefully choosing his words, has repeatedly called for an immediate ceasefire and said on Monday that military airstrikes are indiscriminate and should be banned, reports RTE.
Some US officials have used Christian language in an attempt to justify the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran, reports RTE.
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