Israel Moves to Seize Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem’s Properties After Saddling Them With Bogus Tax Debt

By Chris Menahan – Information Liberation

The Israeli government is ramping up its War on Christianity by moving to seize the properties of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem after saddling them with a bogus tax debt.

 

 

From The Middle East Monitor, “Armenian Patriarchate warns Israel intends to confiscate properties in East Jerusalem”:

The Armenian Patriarchate in East Jerusalem warned on Wednesday of Israel’s intention to confiscate its properties in the occupied city, claiming that it has accumulated debts that it described as “astronomical and illegal” since 1994. The Patriarchate said that the Israeli municipality in Jerusalem is demanding that it pays taxes, otherwise it will put its properties up for sale in a public auction.

“A legal hearing on this matter is scheduled for 24 February, as a result of a petition submitted by the Patriarchate in the hope of stopping what it sees as an unfair seizure of its real estate, which it has owned for centuries, in order to collect the Arnona [municipal tax] debts that have allegedly accumulated since 1994,” explained the Armenian Patriarchate. “If, God forbid, our petition is rejected, the Jerusalem Municipality will seize real estate belonging to the Patriarchate and auction it off to recover alleged disputed debts that have never been proven in court.”

It noted that the petition is directed against the actions of the collection officer – an employee of the Jerusalem Municipality – who decided that the Patriarchate owes an astronomical amount in debt, without considering the statute of limitations, and without providing a clear explanation of the basis of the alleged debt. It pointed out that a large part of the alleged debt is related to properties actually leased to the Jerusalem Municipality itself.

“The same municipal employee refuses to review the validity of the debt he himself determined, citing that the deadline for objection has passed,” added the autonomous body, even though the Patriarchate demonstrated that “the claims were not properly delivered to it within the required time frame.”

The foreclosure process was temporarily suspended upon the filing of the petition. However, the Patriarchate warns that if the court denies its petition, the Municipality will resume the seizure of its properties and auction them off to recover the disputed debt.

The Patriarchate also noted that this would set a dangerous legal precedent that could legitimise the confiscation of other Christian institutions in Israel, threatening the overall Christian presence in the Holy Land. It said that this would cause damage to the property owners that is far greater than the amount of the alleged and disputed debts.

“To the best of our knowledge, the Armenian Patriarchate is the only Christian community chosen — and perhaps targeted — to face such unprecedented and irreversible measures due to the alleged Arnona debt.”

It warned that such behaviour could jeopardise “the long-standing mission of the Armenian Patriarchate in the Holy Land, which has been active since the seventh century,” as well as threaten the continued existence of the Armenian community, which dates back to the fourth century.

The Armenian Church body considered this behaviour to be a clear attempt to undermine the Patriarchate by isolating it through economic pressure, with the aim of reducing its presence in the Holy Land.

It also warned that any judicial ruling would have a negative impact on the overall Christian presence in the Holy Land, as well as on the religious, cultural, educational and ministerial activities of all Christian institutions currently operating in the area.

In recent years, the Israeli occupation authorities have ramped up their measures by demanding taxes from historic churches in Jerusalem. The churches also say that Israeli authorities facilitate the seizure of church properties in the city by Israeli settler groups, which is happening in the Bab Al-Khalil area of the Old City of Jerusalem.

Christians in Israel are regularly spat on, abused and treated like dirt by Jewish supremacists who mock and curse Jesus Christ.

 

 

 

 

Two influential members of Israel’s Knesset introduced a bill in 2023 to outlaw teaching the Gospel and sentence violators to prison.

If these human rights abuses were happening in China, the US would be screaming about it from the hilltops and rolling out sanctions.

As it’s happening in Israel, our government is instead just ignoring it all and sending them endless weapons and billions of taxpayer dollars.