The Sabbath of Light was celebrated by Christians in Palestine on Saturday, despite strict restrictions imposed by Israeli authorities in occupied East Jerusalem, Gaza and other Palestinian cities. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem saw the Holy Light flood its interior, with the flames then sent to Ramallah, other Palestinian towns, neighbouring Arab countries and European nations. For the second year in a row, Israeli forces imposed strict restrictions on the Sabbath of Light celebrations, with videos showing soldiers beating young men, struggling with women and pushing clerics heading to the church going viral on social media platforms. William Khoury, former deputy head of the Palestinian Orthodox Club and a member of the Arab Orthodox Christian community, said that what happened was “nothing new”, with metal barriers, police and armed soldiers placed on the day of the Holy Fire for over a decade. Fadi Halabi, a security analyst based in Jerusalem, said that Israeli restrictions on Palestinian Christians were part of the country’s right-wing government’s decisions to erase other local communities in Jerusalem and show that it was exclusive to a Jewish identity. Christians once comprised 20% of Jerusalem’s population but now account for less than 2%.
In Gaza, the Greek Orthodox community celebrated Holy Saturday in the Church of Saint Porphyrius in the Zaitoon neighbourhood of the Old City of Gaza. Dozens of families attended ceremonies of the outpouring of Christ’s light according to the Bible. Celebrations began with a display by the scouts and the bishop’s welcome. Khader Nasrawi, a freelance graphic designer and father of two, said that he and his family loved to celebrate Easter and the resurrection of Jesus. However, as Christians living in Gaza, their joy was incomplete. Every year they faced difficulties in leaving Gaza and obtaining permits from the Israeli side to go to Bethlehem or the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem to attend the Holy Light ceremonies. According to Palestinian news agency Wafa, Israeli authorities ramped up their restrictions on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre this year, limiting the number who could attend the Holy Sabbath to only 1,800 people. Christians in Gaza fill out applications in hopes the authorities will allow them to attend the holy days in Jerusalem or Bethlehem. Usually, there are only a few permits given, but this year Wafa said there were fewer than ever, leaving many Christians in Gaza heartbroken.
Elias al-Jilda, a member of the Council of Deputies of the Arab Orthodox Church in Gaza, said that this year’s Easter celebrations came against the backdrop of great harassment against Christians and Muslims in Jerusalem, such as attacks on worshippers in the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. He added that there were also racist practices by Israeli extremists who spat on Christian nuns in Jerusalem, evidence of the fanaticism and extremism practised by the Israeli occupation, especially by the extremist Israeli government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Al-Jilda said that these restrictions aimed to empty Jerusalem of Christians and Muslims and push them to emigrate outside the country, as is happening, and this was a direct form of religious persecution. Christians in Gaza suffered the most from the continued refusal of permits to visit Jerusalem or Bethlehem, where the number of approved permits was always very few. Al-Jilda noted that this was an intentional ban on exercising their natural right to practice their religious rites and was contrary to all international, legal and human laws. He called for urgent intervention by the international community and advocates of peace and human rights to stop the persecution of the right to worship in Palestine against Muslims and Christians.