Christian schools in Jerusalem remained closed on 1 September because more than 70 teachers from the West Bank had been denied entry. But what surprised Benoit Lannoo, an Antwerp based expert on Eastern Christians, most of all was that there was no reaction whatsoever from European, Western institutions or from any EU Member State, neither from Great Britain nor from the United States.
It was to be expected, even though the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land and Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa – the man who served as Custos from 2004 to 2016 and has since become Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem – undoubtedly spared no effort to persuade the Israeli authorities to change their minds. Since the start of this year, 2026, the Israeli military occupation forces have regularly denied access to the city to Palestinian teachers and other staff of Christian schools in Jerusalem who come from neighbouring villages in the West Bank and who therefore hold Palestinian identity documents.
In Jerusalem, there are 15 Christian schools of various denominations, catering for a total of more than 10,000 school-age children. Some of them are Latin Catholic, like the Terra Sancta School in the Talbiyeh neighbourhood of West-Jerusalem. Others depend on the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, like the Mar Mitri located near Jaffa Gate in the Old City. Just outside the walls of the Old City, you can also find the Saint George’s School depending on the Anglican diocese. And in the Armenian neighbourhood of the Old City is, of course situated an Armenian school, the Saints Tarkmanchatz Armenian School. All provide for inclusive education for Christian and Muslim youngsters.
Permits for Palestinians from the West Bank working in East Jerusalem were already subject to all manner of restrictions long before the Hamas terrorist attack on 7 October 2023. Single Palestinians from the occupied territories for example are not allowed to work in Christian schools in Jerusalem; only married teachers and staff members are permitted to do so. But since 7 October 2023, most of the 120,000 Palestinian commuters who used to travel to Jerusalem have, in any case, been unable to enter the ‘City of Peace’. The measure is of course called a ‘security measure’, but it meanwhile is economically strangling the population of the West Bank.
Apartheid
The numerous measures imposed on Palestinians by the Israeli Apartheid regime are introduced step by step so as not to provoke too much protest either in Israel or abroad. Is ‘Apartheid’ the right term? Of course it is, since those are ‘legal’ measures that prescribe ‘separate treatment’ for Palestinians. Not ‘separate treatment’ for foreigners, because, according to Israel, these Palestinians have no country. The comparison with the South African Apartheid regime and its ‘tuisland’ or ‘Bantustans’ is entirely valid: a ‘domestic’ minority group is systematically discriminated against through a ‘legal’ framework.
The connotation of Apartheid is often rejected, as there are also Arab citizens in Israel. But this aspect of Tel Aviv shares with the Pretoria Apartheid regime in the past: ‘divide et impera’. Different minorities are treated differently and, even within these minority groups, different restrictions are imposed. Moreover, there is another similarity with the South African model of the years 1948-1994: discriminatory laws and administrative harassment are being introduced gradually. The law restricting for example the ability of teachers who qualified in the West Bank to teach in Jerusalem or elsewhere in Israel dates back to July last year.
More than 70 teachers
Last March, it was on the basis of that law that the Israeli Ministry of Education informed all Christian schools in Jerusalem that, from the start of the next academic year, they would have to recruit teachers who live in the city or hold Israeli teaching qualifications. The General Secretariat of Christian Schools in Jerusalem had immediately condemned the measure, arguing that it would make it impossible for these schools to operate and that they risked losing their Christian identity. Their alarm went unheeded; only the pontifical organisation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) and the Vatican media took any notice.
Christian schools in Jerusalem employ 820 teachers, of whom last academic year around 180 held a Palestinian certificate of competence and lived outside the checkpoints. Just before the new term, the Christian schools found that more than 70 teachers were being prevented by the Israeli authorities from coming to work. “The absence of this large number of staff members affects various aspects of school organisation, including educational, administrative, and health services, in addition to cleaning services and safety procedures. This makes it impossible to guarantee a safe and stable start for our students,” their press releases the night of 31 August noticed.
School strike
“Following consultations of the relevant authorities and representatives of parents, it has been decided to suspend school attendance Tuesday morning, 1 September 2026, until the permits for teachers and staff are reissued and renewed,” stated the General Secretariat of the Christian Schools of Jerusalem. Their press release was spread by the Custody, which indicates how important this matter is for the Christians in the Holy Land – and for the Holy See, as everyone knows about its direct connection with Cardinal Pizzaballa. Unlike the alerts in the spring, this news was picked up by Christian media outlets around the world. But political or diplomatic reactions in the West? None whatsoever.
As is often the case, the Israeli policy of intimidation is implemented in a procession of Echternach. On Tuesday evening, the military coordinator for government affairs in the Occupied Territories refuted that the teachers had been denied access. The following day, all of them had their permits renewed. As a result, the Christian schools in Jerusalem were finally able to begin the new school year. For centuries, these schools in the Holy Land have provided an inclusive education not only for Christian pupils but also for Muslims. This interfaith socio-cultural fabric, which is fundamental to the ‘City of Peace’, is seen as a thorn in the side by extremist Zionists.
Looking to the side
Whilst Israel pursues a policy of Apartheid, the West looks to the side. Is it not shocking that this case of teachers being blocked has not received the slightest coverage in the mainstream Western media. Nor has a single European body – neither Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, nor the EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, nor Council President António Costa – nor a single foreign ministry of a Member State spoken out. Nor has anyone in Donald Trump’s administration batted an eyelid, nor a single honourable gentleman or distinguished Lady in London. And so, through small, stealthy steps, Christian life is being made impossible in the city where Christianity was born …
… and we couldn’t care less! But the matter is not over yet. “Some permits have been extended for a week,” explains George Akroush of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, “others for a month, and some for the rest of the calendar year. But the 70 people affected still do not have their permits until the end of the school year. Church leaders must therefore continue to put pressure on the Israeli authorities. We hope that full permits will be issued soon, after Christmas.” Doesn’t the spirit of coexistence in Jerusalem’s schools deserve that we too put more pressure on Tel Aviv, or shall we remain silent?