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Christians in Palestinian Territories Concerned About Their Future

(Zenit-Vatican News)Christians of the Palestinian territories are wondering about their future as a small minority - 50,000 in the midst of more than 3 million Muslims. "The political, administrative, and police structures [of the PA] often discriminate against them," explained Graziano Motta, correspondent of Vatican Radio. "They have been continually exposed to pressures by Muslim activists and have been forced to profess fidelity to the intifada....Frequently, there are cases in which the Muslims expropriate houses and lands belonging to Catholics, and often the intervention of the authorities has been lacking in addressing acts of violence against young women or offenses against the Christian faith." Arafat "ignored - and in practice boycotted - the proposal of a special status for the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem. In the name of Islam, he was firm in his claim for Palestine's exclusive sovereignty over the Holy City," Michel Sabbah, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, told Vatican Radio.
2004-11-19 00:00:00
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