The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, Theophilos III, visiting the Christian town of Taybeh with other Jerusalem-based clerics – said settlers had started a fire near a cemetery and a 5th-century church there last week. “These actions are a direct and intentional threat to our local community … but also to the historic and religious heritage,” the patriarch told diplomats and journalists at a press conference in Taybeh. Settlers had also attacked homes in the area, he said.
