Israeli military declares Christian village of Taybeh closed military zone
Taybeh remains one of the last Christian settlements on the West Bank.
The Israeli army has declared the Christian village of Taybeh on the West Bank a closed military zone. The military command made this decision to prevent systematic attacks by radical Israeli settlers on local residents, reports The Hindu.
An Israeli army spokesperson explained that the new order restricts entry into Taybeh for outsiders and applies exclusively to Israeli citizens. These measures will not affect local Palestinian residents. If any violations of the order are recorded, the command promises to deploy IDF soldiers to the area to disperse unlawful gatherings and detain suspects in the interest of public safety.
Western countries have already responded to the escalation of violence by imposing sanctions on a number of extremist Israeli settler groups. A special UN commission explicitly stated in its report that official Israeli authorities were involved in attacks on Palestinians. Israel's mission in Geneva rejected the experts' conclusions, stating that the prime minister and president of the country regularly condemn any form of violence.
Part of Taybeh's territory falls within the so-called Zone B. The Palestinian Authority exercises civil administration there, while security is a shared responsibility with the Israeli command. Around 50,000 Palestinian Christians currently live on the West Bank and in Jerusalem, maintaining their communities on the ancient Holy Land since biblical times.
Taybeh remains one of the few surviving Christian settlements on the West Bank. Violence by Israeli radicals has long been a source of deep concern for local Christians.
The UOJ previously reported how Israeli settlers set fire to Christian homes in Taybeh.
