Israel’s attacks on sanctities in Lebanon ‘not surprising,’ Orthodox Archbishop says

Wassim Seifeddine

A recent attack by an Israeli soldier on a statue of Jesus Christ in southern Lebanon is “not surprising,” Lebanese Metropolitan Elias Kfoury said on Wednesday.

Video footage on Sunday showed an Israeli soldier smashing the statue with a pickaxe in the town of Debel in southern Lebanon, triggering a wave of global outrage.

The Israeli army has a “long record of violations” of religious sanctities, Kfoury, the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Tyre, Sidon and Dependencies, told Anadolu in an interview inside St. George’s Cathedral of the Greek Orthodox Church in Hasbaya.

He highlighted a previous incident in 2024 when Israeli soldiers raided the monastery of Deir Mimas of the Orthodox Church, and “vandalized it, entered the church, and carried out abusive acts, including mocking Christian rituals.”

“They held a wedding between two young men to mock our rituals,” Kfoury added.

“What recently happened in the breaking of the head of a statue of Jesus Christ is part of the same pattern.”

The assault is not limited to stones or religious symbols, but also “targeted human beings and their dignity,” Kfoury stated, pointing to a large number of civilian casualties and widespread destruction of homes.

The archbishop slammed Israel’s description of its army as the “defense forces” saying he sees it as an “offensive army.”

The Israeli army “does not respect any religious or human sanctities,” he said.

Appeal for respecting sanctities

Kfoury urged countries supporting Israel to pressure Tel Aviv to “respect sanctities and human dignity, and spare civilians the horrors of war.”

“We are not addressing a specific religious group; believers in God of all sects, Christians and Muslims, share the same suffering.”

The international law “does not find its way into implementation in the Israeli case,” the archbishop noted.

Criticism of international community

The archbishop also placed major responsibility on countries supporting Israel, saying the “greatest blame lies with those who cover up these practices,” questioning the role of international organizations in protecting human rights.

“Where are human rights when it comes to Lebanese civilians? There are women, children, and elderly people who were killed despite having no connection to the conflict,” the archbishop added.

At least 2,294 people have been killed, 7,544 inured and more than 1 million displaced by Israeli attacks on Lebanon since March 2, according to official figures.

Kfoury renewed his appeal to the international community and the UN to “put an end to these violations and enforce international laws,” questioning whether the world has “entered the era of the law of the jungle.”

He also stressed the need of “respecting human beings above all else,” highlighting the scale of human losses caused by the war.

*Writing by Serdar Dincel