Netanyahu: ‘I condemn the damage to the statue of Jesus; Christians thrive here’

Milan, 20 April (LaPresse) – “Yesterday, like the vast majority of Israelis, I was shocked and saddened to learn that an IDF soldier had damaged a Catholic religious icon in southern Lebanon. I condemn this act in the strongest possible terms. The military authorities are conducting a criminal investigation into the matter and will take appropriately severe disciplinary measures against the perpetrator.” This is what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote in a post on social media platform X, following the image that circulated yesterday on social media of an Israeli soldier destroying a statue of Jesus. ‘Whilst Christians are being massacred in Syria and Lebanon by Muslims, the Christian population in Israel is thriving, unlike elsewhere in the Middle East,’ Netanyahu’s post continues, “Israel is the only country in the region where the Christian population and standard of living are growing. Israel is the only place in the Middle East that respects freedom of worship for all. We express our regret over the incident and for any pain this may have caused to believers in Lebanon and around the world.”