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<p>The escalating violence in Jerusalem and the occupied Palestinian territories is
of deep concern. Representatives of the Church continue to work closely with the Department
of Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, the British Consulate in Jerusalem,
the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem and other faith leaders in the city. The Archbishop
of Canterbury remains in close contact with the Archbishop of the Diocese of Jerusalem,
the Rt Revd Hosam Naoum, and the Bishop of Southwark regularly visits the region with
Roman Catholic bishops as part of the Holy Land Coordination Group.</p><p>Following
the attacks, the Archbishop of Canterbury issued a statement that read, “The desecration
of Christian graves in Jerusalem is a blasphemous act. I join the Chief Rabbi [Ephraim
Mirvis] and religious leaders in Jerusalem in condemning it and hope those responsible
will be brought swiftly to justice. As we continue to pray for peace in the Holy Land,
I stand with Archbishop Hosam Naoum and other Jerusalem church leaders in calling
for respect, protection, equality and justice for its Christian community – who are
the Living Stones of the church.”</p><p>Interviewed immediately after the attacks
Archbishop Naoum spoke about the increasing use of exclusion, segregation, and intolerance
alongside increasing attacks on the holy sites.</p><p>The Heads of Churches in Jerusalem
have urged all sides to "actively reaffirm their commitment to a promotion of
an environment of safety, mutual respect and religious tolerance in the Holy Land."
They also called for assurances to be given to the Christian community in Jerusalem
following the increasing levels of extremist threats against them. At a recent meeting
with the Jordanian Parliament Committee of External Affairs in Amman, the Heads of
Churches raised concerns about the future of a continued presence of Christians, specifically
Arabic Christians, in Jordan, Jerusalem and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.</p><p>The
statement by the Anglican Archbishop of Jerusalem, the Rt Revd Hosam Naoum, can be
read here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fj-diocese.org%2Fwordpress%2F2023%2F01%2F04%2Fstatement-on-the-recent-vandalism-and-desecration-of-the-protestant-cemetery-on-mt-zion-4-january-2023%2F&data=05%7C01%7Crichard.chapman%40churchofengland.org%7C7eee7cd2aa2b481e260d08db1f4c6e8e%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C638138185383336194%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=WdBwGrAWNln1ikEfZECTdl%2FmbmmsOhYxtXygljd%2BrSk%3D&reserved=0"
target="_blank">https://j-diocese.org/wordpress/2023/01/04/statement-on-the-recent-vandalism-and-desecration-of-the-protestant-cemetery-on-mt-zion-4-january-2023/</a><br>
<br> The statements of the Patriarchs and Head of all Churches in Jerusalem can be
read here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fj-diocese.org%2Fwordpress%2F2023%2F01%2F05%2Fhead-of-churches-statement-on-the-recent-vandalism-desecration-of-the-protestant-cemetery-on-mt-zion%2F&data=05%7C01%7Crichard.chapman%40churchofengland.org%7C7eee7cd2aa2b481e260d08db1f4c6e8e%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C638138185383336194%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=r1cKj%2Bx0ZEGj9gyZ34sc0dxE6wfl4K%2B3u2tqylO4QLw%3D&reserved=0"
target="_blank">https://j-diocese.org/wordpress/2023/01/05/head-of-churches-statement-on-the-recent-vandalism-desecration-of-the-protestant-cemetery-on-mt-zion/</a></p><p>The
statement of the World Council of Churches can be read here: <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.oikoumene.org%2Fresources%2Fdocuments%2Fwcc-statement-on-desecration-of-historic-protestant-cemetery-in-jerusalem&data=05%7C01%7Crichard.chapman%40churchofengland.org%7C7eee7cd2aa2b481e260d08db1f4c6e8e%7C95e2463b3ab047b49ac1587c77ee84f0%7C0%7C0%7C638138185383336194%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=htYbQCCPE3poMNX4mtrZwE%2FMiUxkG%2Bv362R5aefrDKw%3D&reserved=0"
target="_blank">https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/documents/wcc-statement-on-desecration-of-historic-protestant-cemetery-in-jerusalem</a></p><p>
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