In traumatised West Bank, church leaders pray for end to Israeli settler violence

“It’s very difficult to talk about hope now,” said Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. He was speaking while flanked by a solemn group of church leaders, gathered in the ancient Christian village of Taybeh in the occupied West Bank, to show solidarity with the tiny community as it faces Israeli settler attacks.

“It’s become evidently clear that there is no law here. The only law is power,” Cardinal Pizzaballa added.

It was a starkly bleak assessment from the most influential Christian in the Holy Land, who only recently returned from the papal conclave in the Vatican, having been in the running to become pope. In Jerusalem, Cardinal Pizzaballa is perhaps only rivalled in power by US ambassador Mike Huckabee, a deeply pro-Israel, pro-settler Christian Zionist who has the ear of President Donald Trump.

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After trudging up stairs in the blazing sun to reach the ruins of the fifth century Church of St George, the cardinal and his peers led a prayer for peace. The small and ageing population of the village chanted the Arabic verses, a group far outnumbered by journalists and diplomats who came to observe the plea for help.

As the only remaining Christian-majority community in the West Bank, life in Taybeh reflects the uncertain future for all Palestinian Christians. Its empty streets show how much smaller the community has become, as migration increases.

Chicken farmer Jerry Salwad’s story tells of the struggle of Christians facing settler violence. His farm on the east of the village is close to the illegal Israeli outpost, from which many of the attacks begin.

“We reached the level that our basic needs to carry on operating the chicken farm, transferring chicks and food, for example, are being stopped by the settlers who prohibit us from travelling,” he said.

“Once, I was coming home from work in my car and the settlers came from the other direction and blocked the road. They took their weapons out and wanted to take my car. I tried to stall time and gave them a key that thank goodness didn’t work. I tried to speak to the Israeli police but there was no answer.”

Church patriarchs and leaders issued a statement on Monday after particularly brutal attacks last week, describing the broader problem of settler violence against residents of the town. “In recent months, the radicals have led their cattle to graze on the farms of Christians on the east side of Taybeh, the agricultural area, rendering them inaccessible at best, but at worst damaging the olive groves that families depend on," the statement said. "Last month several homes were attacked by these radicals, lighting fires and erecting a billboard that said 'there is no future for you here.'"

Church leaders stress that this is not only a problem for Christians, but all Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Father Bashar Fawadleh, of Taybeh’s Catholic congregation, said on Monday that his village represented “a true mirror of what towns and villages across the West Bank endure”.

“Lands cultivated with love are being burnt," he added. "Armed settlers trespass on our lands. We cannot access our own olive trees. Citizens are terrorised at night and besieged by day. We are surrounded by iron gates, choked by military checkpoints, as if we are strangers in our own land."

A short drive along the road from Taybeh, two Palestinians were killed on Friday by settlers in the town of Turmus Aya. Sayafollah Musallat, 20, a US-Palestinian, was beaten to death. Hussein Al Shalabi, 23, was beaten and then shot dead in the same attack.

Like the attacks on Taybeh, the killing of the two men received global media attention, in part because Mr Musallat was American, but also because of the brutal way in which he was killed.

But there are daily incidents that receive little media coverage. In recent weeks, settlers have forced Palestinians to leave their villages and carried out repeated attacks on property and people. An average of two Palestinians a day have been injured in settler attacks this year, the UN’s latest statistics show. This comes amid expanded Israeli military operations in the region since the Gaza war began in 2023.

Even with the extra attention of the past week, which in Taybeh attracted journalists from around the world and more than 20 diplomatic missions, the incidents appear to have barely registered with Israeli authorities.

Israeli police say they have detained people suspected of the killings in Turmus Aya, but if previous cases are anything to go by, charges and sentencing are unlikely. Israel's military said it was investigating the incident. The Musallat family have criticised the US government, saying it is failing to take action.

Shortly before beginning his prayers, Cardinal Pizzaballa – respected in Israel and a fluent Hebrew speaker – was asked whether he expected an effective response from authorities. He said only that “I doubt, but I hope”.

Mr Fawadleh, wh has to live the grim reality of the village, said it was a holy act to remind the world that his community “are not passers-by, nor migrants, nor strangers" in the Holy Land. “This land is not merely a homeland … it is a calling, a mission and a covenant that shall not be broken.”