The most senior church leaders in the Holy Land on Monday toured the Christian Palestinian town of Taybeh in the West Bank, which has been the scene of several attacks by radical settlers in recent weeks, alleging that Israeli authorities have facilitated the ongoing harassment.

In a joint statement, Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem and Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa said the settler attacks were a threat to Christian heritage in the region, and called for an investigation into the failure of Israeli law enforcement authorities to respond to such assaults.

They made their statement during a solidarity visit that both the church leaders made to Taybeh, where they also conducted a press conference and held a prayer ceremony at the site of a recent arson incident.

King Abdullah II of Jordan also issued a statement to coincide with the church leaders’ visit, in which he condemned a recent settler arson attack in the town as “a blatant violation of the sanctity of the dead, Christian holy sites, and [the] Christian presence in the Holy Land.”

Taybeh residents and local church leaders said last week that the town had experienced an upsurge in settler harassment recently. They pointed to the arson attack, which they said was committed by extremist settlers next to the ruins of the Church of St. George in the town last Monday, as one of the most serious incidents so far.

“The Council of Patriarchs and Heads of Churches calls for these radicals to be held accountable by the Israeli authorities, who facilitate and enable their presence around Taybeh,” said Theophilos and Pizzaballa in their joint statement.

“We call for an immediate and transparent investigation into why the Israeli police did not respond to emergency calls from the local community and why these abhorrent actions continue to go unpunished,” they continued.

Local church leaders called the police emergency line twice during the arson attack and were told that a police force was being dispatched, but said that no police officers arrived at the scene.

The police did not respond to a request for comment from The Times of Israel at the time.

Theophilos and Pizzaballa went on to say that Taybeh was facing “an intensifying trend of systemic and targeted attacks,” and called the settler assaults “a direct and intentional threat” to the local Christian community and to “the historic and religious heritage of our ancestors and holy sites.”

During the press conference, Pizzaballa said that fears over violence were pushing Christians to leave the West Bank, estimating that some 50,000 Christian Palestinians currently remain in Jerusalem and the West Bank.

“Unfortunately, the temptation to emigrate is there because of the situation,” he added. “This time it’s very difficult to see how and when this will finish, and especially for the youth to talk about hope, trust for the future.”

Speaking to The Times of Israel, Pizzaballa said that he had been in touch with the Israeli authorities regarding the attacks in Taybeh and was told that they would look into the allegations.

Asked if he believed there would be an effective law enforcement response, however, he said, “I doubt it, but I hope so.”

King Abdullah condemned what he said were “brutal attacks recently carried out by extremist settlers,” and denounced the arson attack in particular.

“His Majesty affirms that the severity of the settlers’ assaults, their daily terrorization of Palestinians, and their systematic aggression against dozens of villages, towns, and camps in the occupied Palestinian territories demand an immediate firm international position to halt these attacks — especially the ongoing genocide of killing and starving children, women, the elderly, and civilians in the Gaza Strip,” the message continued.

Following the end of the press conference held by Theophilos and Pizzaballa, several Taybeh residents approached the two leaders and told them of incidents of harassment they had experienced in recent weeks.

Jawis Awad, a chicken farmer, told Pizzaballa that his work had been severely disrupted by settlers who have made the agricultural land on the eastern borders of Taybeh a virtual no-go zone, due to harassment and intimidation.

Awad alleged that armed settlers had recently set up a road block, pulled his car over, and tried to steal his vehicle.

And an olive farmer told Pizzaballa that he was now unable to access his olive groves in the same area, due to the threat of violence from the settlers.

Last week, local church leaders stated that the eastern area of Taybeh had become “an open target” for extremist settlers in the area.

Hamdallah Bearat, a resident of Kafr Malik which lies just two kilometers (about a mile and a quarter) to the north of Taybeh and who was present at Monday’s prayer ceremony, described life in the region as “a nightmare” ever since the outbreak of war nearly two years ago following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 atrocities.

Last month, three Palestinians were shot dead and seven more were injured, after a mob of some 100 settlers rampaged through Kafr Malik setting fire to buildings and cars. The IDF claimed it had shot at Palestinian gunmen and rioters hurling stones.

Bearat said settler extremists in the region had been gradually encroaching on his agricultural land, and bringing their sheep to purposefully graze among avocado and olive trees belonging to Palestinian famers in order to destroy the crops.

“You have two different groups, ethnic groups, that are not equal,”  Bearat told The Times of Israel.

“When they come to my land, the settler, to graze his sheep in my land, and I complain to the police officer, the police officer instead of stopping him, he says to me, ‘Do you have a proof that this is your land?’ But did he ask the settler, ‘Do you have the right [to graze his sheep]’?

“They [the settlers] disregard all laws, even Israeli law. Their plan is clear; ethnic cleansing. There is no other explanation.”