Attacks against Christians in Israel double: spitting, assaults, and threats increase in Jerusalem

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Attacks against Christians in Israel double: spitting, assaults, and threats increase in Jerusalem

INFOVATICANA | July 8, 2026

Attacks against Christians in Israel continue to rise. During the second quarter of 2026, the recorded assaults nearly doubled compared to the first three months of the year, according to a report by the Religious Freedom Data Center, which warns of an increase in hate incidents, especially in Jerusalem.

According to the KNA news agency, 83 anti-Christian incidents were documented between April and June, compared to 44 recorded in the first quarter. Of these, ten involved threats or physical assaults. Most of the cases occurred in Jerusalem, particularly in the Old City.


Spitting and assaults in public spaces

The report notes that more than half of the reported incidents consisted of spitting directed at Christians, a practice that for years has especially affected priests, religious, and pilgrims walking the streets of Jerusalem.

In total, 68 of the 83 incidents took place in Jerusalem and 46 occurred in the Old City, where numerous Christian holy sites are concentrated.

The authors of the report warn that attacks are increasingly occurring with greater ease and in broad daylight. “Harassment and assaults are taking place more and more openly in public spaces, and the perpetrators show little restraint,” the document states.

Among the most serious cases is the assault suffered by a French nun near the Old City, who was injured in the head after a violent attack.


Holidays concentrate more incidents

The study highlights that certain events lead to an increase in assaults.

During the celebration of Jerusalem Day, a holiday in which Jewish nationalist groups commemorate the occupation of East Jerusalem after the 1967 Six-Day War with a flag march, eight attacks against Christians were recorded in a single day.

Likewise, during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, seven other incidents were counted in a single day.


Misinformation fuels hostility

The Religious Freedom Data Center attributes part of the rise in violence to the proliferation of hate messages and disinformation campaigns on the internet against the Christian community.

The organization also denounces that the limited institutional visibility of Christianity in Jerusalem contributes to fostering a climate of hostility. In this regard, it calls on the City Council to give Christianity a public recognition similar to that received by Jewish tradition’s holidays and symbols through signs, institutional messages, and other urban elements.

According to the report, “the continued exclusion of the Christian presence from the public representation of Jerusalem directly contributes to manifestations of hostility by some Jews toward Christians.”


Proposals to curb the assaults

The organization has offered to collaborate with the Israel Defense Forces in training their personnel to prevent this type of behavior. It is also preparing informational material aimed at tour guides who accompany groups of soldiers through Jerusalem.

The report does not include attacks committed by Israeli citizens outside the country. Among them, it mentions the destruction of a statue of Jesus Christ and the desecration of an image of the Virgin Mary in southern Lebanon by Israeli soldiers.

Throughout 2025, the Religious Freedom Data Center documented 181 attacks against Christians in Israel, of which 150 occurred in Jerusalem, a trend that, according to data from the first half of 2026, continues to worsen.