Middle East
“The Israel-Palestine situation will take a long time to start moving again. The international community and the USA, on their own, cannot make the situation move on, if, in the Holy Land, Israelis and Palestinians do not want to”. This was stated to SIR by the apostolic administrator of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, monsignor Pierbattista Pizzaballa, as he answered the question whether the election of Donald Trump as US president will end the deadlock in the negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. “Israeli society and Government lean on the right, the Palestinian one is weak and divided. I see no elements on the horizon – but I hope I’m wrong – that may suggest any immediate change”. In 2017, Israeli occupation will be in its 50th year. “I think that, as a Church and as a Christian community, we will have to stop and reflect on such anniversary and the potential prospects – the apostolic administrator pointed out –, because the wounds are still open. There’s maybe more than one generation that has not experienced such reality at all and maybe cannot think of a different life in the Holy Land. This must be a concern for us and must drive us to keep the beacon of hope always on”. Pizzaballa also confirmed that an agreement is being discussed for the Israeli government’s funding of Christian schools: “there is no agreement yet, but the negotiations have been resumed. Hopefully, they will come to fruition. Note though that this is just the first share of the funds”. “Distant” is instead the achievement of a general agreement about the status of Christian schools. The apostolic administrator is more optimistic instead about the “Fundamental agreement between the Holy See and the State of Israel”: “negotiations were resumed last week with good will by both sides. Hopefully, this time good intensions will be followed by facts”. Extending the perspective to the Syrian and Iraqi problems, mgr. Pizzaballa stated that “there’s no Christian in the Holy Land who doesn’t talk of Daesh or of his Syrian and Iraqi brothers. All Christian communities express solidarity with their Christian brothers, even concretely, with fund-raising campaigns and vigils. They are amazed at the testimony they are giving and are encouraged to look ahead with strength and courage”.
