There has recently been a rise in Israeli attacks on Palestinian Christians. [Getty]
Israeli forces on Tuesday attacked Palestinian Christians marking the Feast of St. George in the town of Al-Khader south of Bethlehem, the Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.
A convoy of Israeli army vehicles stormed the old area of Al-Khader, where hundreds of Palestinian Christians had assembled around St. George’s Monastery to mark the festival, security sources told WAFA.
Israeli soldiers then used tear gas and stun grenades to attack the celebrants. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said that its teams had transported one wounded person to the hospital after he was beaten inside the monastery.
Palestinian Orthodox Christians mark the Feast of St. George on 5 and 6 May, which coincides with 23 April in the Julian Calendar.
St. George is known by Christians in the Levant Region as Mar Jirjis, while Muslims call him Al-Khader.
The St. George’s Monastery was originally built in his name south of Bethlehem in the 16th century, and was rebuilt in 1912.
St George’s Day is marked in Bethlehem and the surrounding area, which has a large Christian population, with prayers and religious services, with many Muslims also taking part in the festivities.
The rituals usually start with participants walking barefoot from Bethlehem to the monastery.
The Israeli forces’ attack on the celebrants comes amid a recent increase in violence against Christians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
In March, Israeli forces prevented Catholic Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, drawing worldwide backlash.
A nun was also recently attacked by an extremist Israeli who chased and kicked her, while Christians have been deliberately spat at by Jewish extremists in multiple incidents.
