US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee visited the Christian village of Taybeh July 19 after an arson attack by Israeli settlers near the fifth-century Church of Saint George, condemning the violence as a “crime against humanity and God.”
“Taybeh is a quiet Palestinian Christian village south of Jerusalem w/ a lot of American citizens that has been vandalized-including fires set at ancient church,” Huckabee, a Christian, wrote on X. “I visited there today.”
“Desecrating a church, mosque or synagogue,” he added, “is a crime against humanity & God.”
In an official statement from the US Embassy, Huckabee called the attacks in Taybeh “an absolute travesty” and urged full prosecution for those responsible.
“Not just reprimanded,” he said, “that’s not enough. People need to pay a price for doing something that destroys that which belongs, not just to other people, but that which belongs to God. That is a sacrilege. It’s against the Holy.”
He described the violence as a growing threat to “the last bastions of our civilization, the places where we worship.”
“To commit an act of sacrilege by desecrating a place that is supposed to be a place of worship, it is an act of terror,” Huckabee said, “and it is a crime.”
In a separate post on X, Huckabee emphasized his duty to protect all American citizens living in the Holy Land and vowed to seek justice for any who are harmed.
“When they are terrorized or victims of crime I will demand those responsible be held accountable w/ real consequences,” he wrote. “Was in Taybeh today to meet with people of that village to listen & learn.”
Last week, Huckabee also called for a full investigation by Israel into the recent killing of a 20-year-old American-Palestinian in the West Bank, who was reportedly beaten by Israeli settlers.
In a joint statement last week, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, together with the Greek Orthodox and Melkite Greek Catholic patriarchs, warned of “an intensifying trend of systemic and targeted attacks” on Taybeh.
They accused Israeli police of failing to respond to multiple reports of arson, vandalism, and intimidation targeting the town’s Christian residents.
Local Christians in Taybeh also told CatholicVote last month that Israeli “soldiers are usually with the settlers” during the attacks. Still, despite the threats, the Christians remain determined to stay in their village, which holds deep historical and religious significance.
The attacks in Taybeh coincide with another tragedy in the Holy Land: a July 17 Israeli tank strike on Gaza’s only Catholic Church, which killed three civilians and wounded several more.
In his July 20 Angelus address, Pope Leo XIV decried the attack and named each of the victims in prayer.
“I am particularly close to their families and to all the parishioners,” he said. “Sadly, this act adds to the continuous military attacks against the civilian population and places of worship in Gaza. I again call for an immediate halt to the barbarism of the war and for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.”
>>Names and faces of the Catholic dead and wounded from the Gaza parish struck by Israel<<
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Author: Elise DeGeeter
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