Israeli Police Arrest A Man Suspected Of Attacking A Nun Near Jerusalem’s Old City

RAMALLAH, West Bank — Israeli constabulary said Friday that they arrested a 36-year-old caught connected video attacking a nun successful nan latest incident targeting Christians adjacent Jerusalem’s Old City.

Police said nan unnamed man was arrested aft nan onslaught Wednesday adjacent David’s Tomb — a beatified tract extracurricular Zion’s Gate connected nan confederate broadside of nan Old City — “on suspicion of a racially motivated attack,” and remained successful custody.

Police video showed nan nun bruised and nan attacker wearing tzitzit, a fringed undergarment worn by immoderate observant Jewish men.

Olivier Poquillon, nan head of nan French School of Biblical and Archaeological Research, said nan nun was a interrogator astatine nan school. He called nan onslaught an “act of sectarian violence” successful a station connected X.

The Old City successful Israel-annexed eastbound Jerusalem is simply a centuries-old walled enclave built atop millennia of history and location to immoderate of nan holiest sites for Jews, Christians and Muslims. It is simply a flash constituent for tensions arsenic entree and ownership to nan sites are profoundly entangled pinch nan historical and governmental claims that dishonesty astatine nan bosom of nan Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Religious groups person documented a emergence successful acts of harassment and unit against Christian pilgrims and clergy arsenic good arsenic Palestinian Christian residents, including assaults and spitting, often by ultra-Orthodox Jewish yeshiva students.

Wadie Abunassar, nan coordinator of nan Holy Land Christian Forum, called attacks targeting Christians a increasing phenomenon. He attributed nan speedy consequence to nan onslaught connected nan nun to nan truth that it was caught connected video.

He said he felt “great anger connected nan strategy and awesome sadness because I consciousness that this will not extremity anytime soon.” One of nan problems, he said, was nan deterrence against specified violence.

“Many times successful specified cases location are nary arrests and if location are arrests, sometimes aft 1 aliases 2 days, (suspects) are released,” he added. “In immoderate cases, nan constabulary do not urge nan prosecution to record charges aliases to indict them. And successful immoderate cases, erstwhile location is indictment, nan indictment is mild.”

The apprehension comes arsenic Israeli curen of belief minorities is nether scrutiny, weeks aft constabulary constricted entree for vacation believe to Muslims arsenic good arsenic Christians, up to Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa.

Israel besides drew world disapproval aft a worker photographed himself having bludgeoned a fallen statue of Jesus connected nan transverse pinch an ax successful confederate Lebanon. Israeli leaders later disavowed nan incident and said he would beryllium reprimanded.

“In a metropolis ineffable to Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike, we stay committed to protecting each communities and ensuring those responsible for unit are held accountable,” Israeli constabulary said successful a societal media station astir nan man arrested for attacking nan nun.

Metz writes for nan Associated Press.