Occupation obstructs Latin Patriarch's access to Church of the Holy Sepulchre and prevents 'Palm Sunday' mass

Israeli occupation police, this Sunday morning, prevented the Latin Patriarch of Occupied Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from reaching the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The Patriarch was scheduled to preside over the 'Palm Sunday' mass, which marks the beginning of Easter celebrations according to the Western calendar, but security restrictions prevented the completion of religious rituals at one of the holiest Christian sites in the world.

Church sources confirmed that this prevention came as a surprise despite prior coordination by the Patriarchate to secure the passage of the Patriarch's convoy through the alleys of the Old City. The sources explained that occupation forces obstructed the convoy at one of the military checkpoints leading to the church, which led to the cancellation of the mass that was scheduled to be held symbolically and very limitedly.

Field sources stated that Patriarch Pizzaballa was accompanied by only three of his assistants, in compliance with the decision to reduce celebratory manifestations and the absence of the public given the current circumstances. These restrictions come in the context of widespread security tightening imposed by the occupation on the occupied city of Jerusalem and its holy sites, coinciding with the ongoing aggression on the Gaza Strip and escalating tensions in the West Bank.

The measure came despite prior coordination announced by the Patriarchate to ensure the Patriarch's convoy reached the heart of the Old City.