(New York Times) Isabel Kershner - A Catholic church at Tabgha near the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel was damaged by fire early on Thursday, in what the police are treating as an arson attack and possible hate crime. Firefighters extinguished the blaze before it reached the main prayer hall and the church's ancient mosaic floors. Micky Rosenfeld, a spokesman for the Israeli police, said evidence found at the scene indicated that the fire was set deliberately. Israeli leaders condemned the attack. "Such terrible desecration of an ancient and holy place of prayer is an attack on the very fabric of life in our country, where people of different faiths seek to live together in harmony and mutual tolerance and respect," President Reuven Rivlin told the Rev. Gregory Collins, the leader of the Order of St. Benedict in Israel.
2015-06-19 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive