Christianity’s Holiest Site in Jerusalem Shut in Israel Tax Dispute
A pilgrim prays outside the closed gate of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Feb. 25.
Photographer: Gali Tibbon/AFP via Getty Images
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The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, Christianity’s holiest site, was closed to visitors on Sunday in an unprecedented move to protest proposed Israeli tax and land policies governing church-owned property.
The heads of the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Armenian Apostolic churches in the city released a letter accusing Israel of a “systematic and offensive campaign” against Christians. The Jerusalem municipality plans to tax some church assets for a first time, and cabinet ministers are studying a bill to expropriate land in Jerusalem that churches sold in recent years to anonymous buyers.