Members of the clergy and faithfuls attend a prayer service in the Church of All Nations held by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, to mark Palm Sunday in Jerusalem
Members of the clergy and faithfuls attend a prayer service in the Church of All Nations held by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, to mark Palm Sunday in Jerusalem
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday the Latin Patriarch would get "full and immediate access" to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, after police denied him entry on Palm Sunday.
"I have instructed the relevant authorities that Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch, be granted full and immediate access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem," Netanyahu tweeted on X.
Israeli police had prevented the senior Catholic cleric from entering Christianity's most sacred site to celebrate Palm Sunday mass over what Netanyahu had said were security concerns, provoking protests from the European Union and several European countries.
Netanyahu elaborated on Israel's security concerns in his post.
"Over the past several days, Iran has repeatedly targeted the holy sites of all three monotheistic religions in Jerusalem with ballistic missiles," he wrote.
"In one strike, missile fragments crashed meters from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre."
It was to protect worshippers that Israel had asked people of all faiths to "temporarily abstain" from worshipping at all the holy sites in Jerusalem's Old City, he added.
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Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.