CNN questions a lead figure in Israel's settler movement, expressing concern that the movement's actions sound like ethnic cleansing. The interview comes amid ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, with CNN also covering the impact on civilians in Gaza and the challenges of delivering aid to the region.
The head of the Roman Catholic church in the Holy Land, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, has warned that the far-right government of Benjamin Netanyahu has made life worse for Christians in the birthplace of Christianity. The region’s 2,000-year-old Christian community has come under increasing attack, with the most rightwing government in Israel’s history emboldening extremists who have harassed clergy and vandalised religious property at a quickening pace. The increase in anti-Christian incidents comes as the Israeli settler movement, galvanised by its allies in government, appears to have seized the moment to expand its enterprise in the contested capital.
Israeli security forces beating Palestinians inside Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque has led to rocket barrages from Palestinian militant factions in Gaza and Lebanon, and a new military operation by the Israeli government. The conflict is caused by the increasing radicalization of the Israeli settler movement, and its political patronage by the Netanyahu government. The threat of animal sacrifice by settlers at the site of Al Aqsa has driven tensions for decades, and the presence of extremist figures in the government has emboldened them. Palestinians have been holding nightly prayer vigils inside the mosque to defend against what they view as a prelude to a later destruction of the mosque.