10/30/2018 Israel (International Christian Concern) – According to a statement by the Assembly of the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land, monks at the Salesian Monastery at Beit Jamal in Israel discovered on October 16th that their cemetery had been vandalized. Twenty-eight graves were reportedly destroyed, which included broken crosses.
This is not the first time that this site has experienced destruction. A bomb was thrown at the monastery in 2013 and in 2015 the cemetery was also vandalized. It is widely believed that this monastery was once the tomb of Stephen, the first martyr of Christianity.
According to various media sources, an estimated fifty acts of vandalism has occurred on Christian holy sites in Israel within the past six years.
For interviews with Claire Evans, ICC’s Regional Manager, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: press@persecution.org.
