国际英语资讯:Roundup: Israel bans Christians in Gaza from reaching West Bank, Jerusalem for Christmas_时事

国际英语资讯:Roundup: Israel bans Christians in Gaza from reaching West Bank, Jerusalem for Christmas

"Israel is carrying out such measures to force the Christians to leave their homeland Palestine and live abroad, in order to strengthen its occupation of the Palestinian territories," he noted.

Christians in the Gaza Strip, home to 2 million Palestinians, used to travel every year to the West Bank city of Bethlehem and Jerusalem to join Palestinian Christians there to celebrate Christmas and the New Year.

Israel occupied the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in June 1967 before pulling out from Gaza in 2005. Israel imposed a tight blockade on Gaza right after Hamas routed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' security forces and took control of the enclave in 2007.

Hana Eassa, secretary general of the Palestinian Christian Islamic Corporation, also condemned Israel's decision to ban Gaza's Christians from reaching the West Bank.

"The Israeli decision represents a serious violation and breach of the freedom of movement and worship stated in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights," said Eassa.

Bishop Atallah Hanna, Archbishop of Sebastia of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Palestine, said the Israeli measure against the Christians of Gaza is totally rejected and condemned.

"On more than one occasion, we have expressed our reservations over the issue of providing permits by Israel to Christians and also to Muslims on their holidays so that they can reach the holy places all over Palestine," said Hanna.