MADRID: Spain summoned Israel&#39;s top envoy to Madrid on Monday in protest over Israeli police blocking the Latin Patriarch from Christianity&#39;s holiest site in Jerusalem, the foreign minister said. &quot;This cannot happen again. Catholic worship must be able to be celebrated normally,&quot; Jose Manuel Albares told RAC1 radio after Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa was prevented from holding Palm Sunday mass at the Holy Sepulchre church. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez joined a chorus of international condemnation on Sunday, denouncing an &quot;attack on religious freedom&quot;. Israel said the cardinal would be allowed to regain access to the site and cited security concerns for the measure. Since US-Israeli strikes on Iran sparked the Middle East war on February 28, Israeli authorities have banned large gatherings, including at synagogues, churches and mosques. Israel has been represented in Spain by a charge d&#39;affaires since 2024, when it withdrew its ambassador after Madrid recognised a Palestinian state.

Members of the clergy attend a prayer service in the Church of All Nations held by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, to mark Palm Sunday in Jerusalem on March 29, 2026, following the cancellation of the traditional Palm Sunda

Europe

Spain summoned Israel’s envoy after police blocked a Christian leader from a holy site, calling it a violation of religious freedom amid heightened security restrictions.

Spain summons Israeli envoy over Latin Patriarch's church access

ROME: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned Israeli police actions preventing Jerusalem&#39;s Latin Patriarch from celebrating Palm Sunday mass. The Latin Patriarchate earlier said Israeli police stopped Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa -- an archbishop with Catholic jurisdiction across Israel and the Palestinian territories - from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem to conduct the mass. Meloni said in a statement the incident was &quot;an offence not only to the faithful but to any community that respects religious freedom&quot;. Italy&#39;s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, said on X he had summoned Israel&#39;s ambassador over the incident. Israeli police did not immediately respond to AFP&#39;s request for comment about the incident. At the start of the US‑Israeli offensive against Iran on February 28, Israeli authorities banned large gatherings -- including in synagogues, churches and mosques - and capped public events at 50 people. Palm Sunday, which opens Holy Week for Christians, marks Christ&#39;s final entry into Jerusalem, days before his crucifixion and resurrection, according to the Gospels. The Latin Patriarchate had also cancelled the traditional Palm Sunday procession from the Mount of Olives, which normally draws thousands of worshippers. Pope Leo XIV, speaking after the Angelus prayer in Rome on Sunday, paid tribute to &quot;the Christians of the Middle East, who suffer the consequences of a terrible conflict and in many cases cannot fully live the rites of these holy days&quot;.

Middle East

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned Israeli police actions preventing Jerusalem's Latin Patriarch from celebrating Palm Sunday mass

Articles tagged with "Jerusalem's Latin Patriarch"

Spain summons Israeli envoy over Latin Patriarch's church access

Israel preventing mass by Jerusalem's Latin Patriarch an 'offence to the faithful': Italy