Amman, Jordan, August 13, 2017.
Photo: newsbomb.gr His Holiness Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem announced on Saturday that his Church will appeal an Israeli court decision to approve the sale of church property to companies representing Israeli settlers in East Jerusalem reports the Associated Press.
The Local Orthodox Church has been fighting the property deal in court for the past decade, arguing it was conducted illegally by the since-deposed Patriarch Irenaios and therefore invalid. Irenaios, who according to local opinion did not willfully sign the sale documents but was possibly misled by the buyers, was the cause of serious scandal surrounding the deal, and therefore deposed. The Jerusalem Orthodox Church is one of dthe largest single property holder in Jerusalem, but is under pressure from Israeli interests in expanded Jewish settlement there.
Two weeks ago, the Jerusalem District Court upheld the sale, enabling three large properties near the Old City's Jaffa Gate to be leased for 99 years to Ateret Cohanim, an Israeli organization which works to create a Jewish majority in Jerusalem through the purchase of Palestinian properties.
Israel rejects any partition of the city and since the 1967 occupation has transferred 200,000 Jewish settlers to East Jerusalem.
Patriarch Theophilos III said on Saturday that the lower court ruling was “politically motivated” and that the church would appeal to Israel’s Supreme Court.
The church will do “everything within its power so that this unjust ruling will be overturned,” he said at a news conference in the Jordanian capital, Amman.
The patriarch also expressed concerns about alleged efforts by Israeli MPs to restrict the rights of his church and other Christian denominations in the Holy Land to deal independently with their real estate holdings.
He urged the heads of churches to find a joint response to “this alarming and serious development” that he said will affect Christians in the region and around the world.
“We cannot stress too highly the extreme seriousness of the situation,” Theophilos said. He called on world leaders to intervene.
