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Religion News Service - April 25, 1997 Archbishop Protests Seizure of Church Property in Jerusalem NEW YORK (RNS)— A dispute between the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Palestinian Islamic Authority centering on an incident in April has been resolved, following a protest by Archbishop Spyridon to Israel's prime minister and Jerusalem's mayor that they intervene in the dispute. The controversy was sparked by three incidents: the construction of two lavatories by the Muslims in close proximity to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the occupation of two rooms the church had been using in the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City (Church officials said the rooms are part of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate), and the discovery of a newly dug tunnel on Holy Wednesday under the Church of the Holy Sepulcher which led to a nearby mosque. Officials located the tunnel after a section of the church floor above the tunnel collapsed. Jerusalem's Muslim Waqf, the Palestinian Islamic authority in the city, claimed it owned the rooms. The situation came to a head on April 15 when Muslim workmen, who were renovating the mosque that adjoins the Patriarchate ― which is near the Church of the Holy Sepulchre ― allegedly broke into the two rooms, removed their contents and took possession. In identical letters sent on April 16 to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert, Archbishop Spyridon said the church "should not be subject to such violent actions." He urged Netanyahu and Olmert to use their powers to settle the matter so "that peace may once again be restored." The Palestinians evacuated the two rooms a few days later.
[ Religion News Service
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