Vandals have struck again at a Franciscan monastery in the Holy Land today, spray painting offensive remarks on the doors of the abbey located near the Church of the Dormition. This is the second such attack in less than on a month on a Christian monastery. The first occurred on September 11th in a Trappist Monastery in Latroun.
Scrawled on the gates of the Monastery of St. Francis on Mount Zion were words denigrating Jesus Christ along with the phrase “price tag” written next to the blasphemous remarks.
Price tag refers to the name given for vandalism or acts of violence aimed usually at Israeli security forces or Palestinians. Usually carried out by radical Israeli Jewish settlers, attackers will strike at a site, usually Christian or Muslim, as a price for being evicted from their settlements.
The vandals, believed to be pro-Israeli settlement hardliners, have also attacked Muslim holy sites and other Christian sites.
According to Reuters, Israeli President Shimon Peres denounced the “price tag” attacks, saying that such vandalism is contrary to the Jewish faith and “causes great harm to Israel.”
“Holy sites must not be harmed,” he said.
The news agency also reported that Palestinian officials and Israeli rights’ groups have accused the authorities of not doing enough to investigate the attacks.
