Fr Raed talks about the climate of concern about the possibility of a military escalation on the border with Lebanon. The risk of social tensions linked to the conflict in an increasingly radicalised society. The desire to flee does not only affect Christians. “The only solution is for the war in Gaza to end.” He invites the dioceses and priests of Italy (and Europe) to promote small “pilgrimages of solidarity.”
Rameh () – “Everyone is waiting for the spark to fly” that would “trigger an open war,” although there is already a “climate of confrontation,” as demonstrated by the events of recent days with the explosion of pagers and portable radios of Hezbollah members in Lebanon that left dozens dead, he told . Father Raed Abu Sahlieh, parish priest of St. Anthony’s Church in Rameh. The priest is an advisor to the college of the Latin Patriarchate, located about forty kilometers north of Nazareth in Galilee, where the military escalation between the army and the Lebanese Shiite movement is being closely and with concern observed. This is the “northern front” to which the leaders of the Jewish State have so often referred and which, after Gaza, seems to be the objective of a permanent war strategy.
“Hezbollah does not want an open war with Israel,” the priest continued, “for several reasons: support for the Palestinians and the Gaza Strip remains, but the economic and political situation in Lebanon does not allow for a new military adventure, with the consequent destruction of infrastructure and resources. Fear persists, but the only solution is to end the war in Gaza.”
For several weeks now, attention in Israel and the international community has been focused on the northern border with the Land of the Cedars, where the Israeli government seems determined to open a new war front whose consequences could be devastating for the entire region. “Until now the area has experienced a period of relative calm,” says Fr. Raed, who is located a few dozen kilometers from the border with Lebanon, “but now there is a lot of fear about what is happening. The whole of the Middle East does not know what can happen, people are worried, while both sides are fighting. [el ejército israelí y Hezbolá] “They continue to prepare.”
So far the military confrontation in the north has been contained, with “missiles that have not yet reached us, but have stopped in the Golan, in the villages in the north.” [que desde hace tiempo están vacías] “The Israeli army has been firing at the villages in the north of the country and near Tiberias, where there is an Israeli military base. But it seems that these are controlled shots and that so far the civilians have been spared. The 46 villages and settlements in the north are practically empty,” he added, “and their inhabitants have been moved to hotels in central Israel or in Tiberias, and even to the Dead Sea. There are about 150,000 people from the north and on the Gaza border who have been living in shelters for almost 11 months, in a difficult situation: families in the same room, overcrowding that causes social tensions and uncertain prospects for their children,” starting with school.
The social tension linked to the conflict in Gaza is something that is rarely talked about but which risks adding to the numerous problems affecting the country and, by extension, the region: “Some parishioners – explains the priest – work in the reception centres, in the hotels in Tiberias, and they describe to me a reality of great difficulties, people are worried about their possessions, their abandoned houses and properties, which could be destroyed, and many have left the country… According to some sources, around half a million, but there are no official statistics.” The truth, he adds, is that “more than 62% of Israelis have dual nationality, and those who can, leave.”
In Rameh, the population is made up of Christians, Muslims and Druze. There are about 9,000 people who still live together and work together, although a climate of tension is beginning to spread, or at least a spirit of mistrust, as in many other mixed towns. Obviously, eleven months of war, the Hamas terrorist attack and the prospect of opening a northern front are factors that make dialogue difficult and fuel the radicalisation of the respective positions. “Israeli society,” explains Father Raed, “has turned to the right, they want to settle scores with Hamas and Hezbollah, and there is growing tension between Jews and Israeli Arabs.” This situation, he warns, “is leading everyone to ruin,” but it is the result of the political orientation and leadership of three people: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Ministers of Finance and National Security, Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir.
There is a risk, not so hidden, that the country is heading towards the abyss, not only from a military point of view, but also socially and economically: “Everyone is suffering from the crisis,” the priest stresses, “just think that this time of year has traditionally been dedicated to the olive harvest. Before, between 200,000 and 300,000 workers arrived from Palestine on leave, but now there are very few. Those who lived off the harvest risk not earning an income, and the lack of money deprives families of the possibility of paying school fees and denies their children the right to education.”
This crisis, this emptiness, is also reflected in the whole region, from Nazareth to Jerusalem, via Bethlehem and Tiberias, due to the lack of pilgrims, who are the main source of income for Christians in the Holy Land. “For a long time now, Christians living here,” he continues, “have been buying houses abroad, in Cyprus, Georgia, Greece or Romania, and even in Italy, because of fear, lack of prospects and the desire to escape. Here in my area at least 20% of families are ready to pack their bags and go abroad, where they have already bought a property. Everything is empty, today you can visit the Holy Sepulchre and stay and pray for 15, 20 minutes, without rushing, when until shortly before the war you had to queue for hours to enter and make a visit.”
The destruction also affects the West Bank, the scene of raids, invasions and war zones of the Israeli army as part of a “collective punishment”, as the priest of Palestinian origin (born on June 25, 1965 in Zababdeh) calls it. “In just a few days there were 24 dead, in Jenin [que hace poco recibió la visita del patriarca latino, card. Pierbattista Pizzaballa] “Everything has been closed for 10 days, two-metre-deep trenches have been dug in the streets to prevent traffic, going from Jenin to Ramallah is an adventure, between blockades, checkpoints and the fear of attacks by armed settlers who act as if they owned everything.” Finally, the priest wants to say goodbye with an appeal, or rather a final invitation: “I understand that it is difficult for pilgrims to come, but the holy places – concludes Don Raed – can be reached without problems and are safe. The dioceses, the bishops, the priests of Italy [y más en general de Europa y Estados Unidos] “They can organize solidarity visits with small groups, a few faithful, to show their closeness and to give a little help to our economy. I call them “pilgrimages of solidarity”, which would confirm, once again, the role of Christians as a factor of peace in the Middle East.”
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