Palestinians strongly condemned an attack by Israeli settlers, who vandalized a Christian cemetery in occupied East Jerusalem.
Stone graves were destroyed with crosses toppled at the Protestant cemetery on Mount Zion, where Christians believe Jesus's Last Supper took place.
"This is not only a cowardly act, but also disgusting, and it is rejected by any human being," Hosam Naoum, the Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem, told a news conference.
"This attack shows a clear hate speech against Christians in the city of Jerusalem, which we completely reject," he added.
According to the Evangelical Episcopal Church in East Jerusalem, the attack was carried out by two young men on Jan. 1.
Naoum called on the Israeli authorities to bring the perpetrators of the cemetery attack to justice.
"We hope that this matter will not be repeated, because Jerusalem is a city of holy sites," he added.
Israeli police said an investigation has been launched into the attack.
The Chief Justice of Palestine, Mahmoud al-Habash, said the attack reflects the "racist mentality" of Israel.
"This attack represents the racist and barbaric mentality of the Israeli state, which does not differentiate between the living and the dead," he added in a statement.
Palestinian group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, held the Israeli government responsible "for the repercussions of the Israeli extremists' attack on the Christian cemetery."
"This assault and the desecration of Islamic and Christian tombs in Jerusalem reveal the true identity of the aggressive Zionist settlers against the [Palestinian] people and their lands and holy sites," it said in a statement.
Church authorities said the damage was discovered on Tuesday, while security camera footage from Jan.1 showed two men or boys vandalizing the site while wearing Jewish attire.
"These criminal acts were motivated by religious bigotry and hatred against Christians," the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem said in a statement.
Israeli police said Tuesday they had launched an investigation into "the defacement of a large number of tombstones in the Protestant cemetery".
Standing before one of the damaged graves, Naoum said: "We are not only dismayed but we are very much saddened."
The bishop said the cemetery was established in the mid-19th century and is the final resting place of figures including clergy, scientists and politicians.
Among them were "people of great importance that have contributed to the history of Jerusalem and to the life of the people here," he said.
Israel's foreign ministry called for the perpetrators to be prosecuted, writing on Twitter that "this immoral act is an affront to religion".
Mount Zion lies outside the Old City walls and has drawn pilgrims for centuries. It is also revered by Jews, as the burial place of the biblical King David.
In December 2021, church leaders warned that "Christians have become the target of frequent and sustained attacks by fringe radical groups" in Jerusalem and the wider Holy Land.
The statement criticized inaction by law enforcement and local officials, accusations deemed "baseless" by the Israeli foreign ministry.
