The Patriarch of Jerusalem and other Christian leaders are calling on the Israeli government to put a stop to attacks on churches in the holy city.
A Romanian Orthodox Church in the Musrara neighbourhood of East Jerusalem was the victim of an arson attack on 2 February.
It follows an arson attack on a church in the Garden of Gethsemane in December and anti-Christian graffiti sprayed onto the doors of the Dormition Abbey, a Benedictine community in Jerusalem, last May. The graffiti said "kill the pagans" and "death to the Christian unbelievers, enemies of Israel".
His Beatitude Theophilos III said the latest attack was a sign of "hatred for the Christian religion" by radical groups in Israel.
He condemned the "failure of official authorities" in the city to put a stop to the attacks.
"Their tolerance towards such terrorist acts will definitely lead to more fuelling of the conflict in the Holy City," he said. CT.