Patriarch: Christians relations with Palestine are excellent

Roman Catholic Patriarch Michel Sabbah praised the relations existing between the Christian community and Palestine, saying all reports by the Israeli media on a crisis were baseless.

Patriarch Sabbah said relations between Christians and Palestinians were excellent and he refuted a series of press reports published in Israel over the past few weeks that spoke of mounting tension between Palestinian Christians and the Palestinian government.

Other leading Palestinian figures, including Minister of Higher Education Hanan Ashrawi, also denied the Israeli reports and branded them as lies meant to sabotage national unity among all sectors of the Palestinian people.