RAMALLAH, West Bank — Authorities in Israel have detained a 36-year-old suspect captured on camera assaulting a nun in the most recent incident of violence against Christians in the vicinity of Jerusalem’s Old City, police announced Friday.
The unidentified individual was taken into custody following Wednesday’s assault near David’s Tomb — a sacred location outside Zion’s Gate on the Old City’s southern perimeter — “on suspicion of a racially motivated attack,” and continues to be held by authorities.
Video footage released by police revealed the nun with visible injuries and showed the perpetrator dressed in tzitzit, a religious fringed garment typically worn by devout Jewish men.
The victim works as a researcher at the French School of Biblical and Archaeological Research, according to the institution’s director, Olivier Poquillon. In a social media post, he characterized the assault as an “act of sectarian violence.”
The walled Old City district in Israel-controlled east Jerusalem represents a historic enclave spanning thousands of years and houses sacred locations for Jewish, Christian, and Muslim faiths. The area frequently becomes a source of conflict as questions of access and control over these religious sites remain deeply connected to the historical and political disputes central to the Israeli-Palestinian crisis.
Various religious organizations have recorded increasing incidents of intimidation and attacks against Christian visitors, religious leaders, and Palestinian Christian locals, including physical assaults and spitting, frequently perpetrated by ultra-Orthodox Jewish seminary students.
According to Wadie Abunassar, who coordinates the Holy Land Christian Forum, violence directed at Christians represents an escalating trend. He suggested the swift police action in this case resulted from the availability of video evidence.
“I feel great anger on the system and great sadness because I feel that this will not end anytime soon,” he stated. Among the challenges, he cited insufficient deterrent measures against such attacks.
“Many times in such cases there are no arrests and if there are arrests, sometimes after one or two days, (suspects) are released,” he explained. “In some cases, the police do not recommend the prosecution to file charges or to indict them. And in some cases, when there is indictment, the indictment is mild.”
This detention occurs amid increased examination of Israel’s treatment of religious minorities, following recent police restrictions on holiday worship access for Muslims and Christians, including Latin Patriarch’s Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa.
Israel faced global condemnation after a soldier photographed himself destroying a fallen crucifix statue with an ax in southern Lebanon. Israeli officials subsequently condemned the action and announced disciplinary measures.
“In a city sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike, we remain committed to protecting all communities and ensuring those responsible for violence are held accountable,” Israeli police stated in their social media announcement regarding the arrest.
