The image of an Israeli soldier hitting a figure of Jesus Christ with a sledgehammer in southern Lebanon has generated widespread condemnation, in a case for which Israel’s prime minister promised “severe measures.”
Residents of the Lebanese town of Debel claim that the crucifix was in front of the house of a family in that place that has been caught in the middle of the Israeli army’s fighting against the Shiite Hezbollah militia.
Priest Fadi Flaifel, leader of Debel’s Christian congregation, told the BBC that they “totally reject the desecration of the cross, our sacred symbol, and of all religious symbols.”
“It goes against the declaration of human rights and does not reflect civility,” he said. He assured that similar acts had already occurred before.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated in X that he was “stunned and saddened” after learning that “an IDF soldier damaged a Catholic religious icon in southern Lebanon.”
“I condemn the act in the strongest terms. The military authorities are conducting a criminal investigation into the matter and will take stern and appropriate disciplinary action against the offender,” he added.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was analyzing the incident “with great severity and emphasizes that the soldier’s conduct is totally incompatible with the values expected of its troops.”
The IDF stated that “appropriate measures will be taken against those involved” and that it was working with the Christian community to “return the statue to its place.”
The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, who is a Baptist minister, responded on X that “swift, severe and public consequences are needed.”
Convictions for the case
Adeeb Joudeh AlHusseini, the custodian of the keys of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, condemned the incident in a statement: “This is not an isolated incident, but a direct violation of a sanctity that goes beyond stone and wood to attack the dignity of faith itself,” he said.
The act, AlHusseini continued, highlights “the fragility of rhetoric that proclaims respect for religions while practices on the ground contradict it,” and called for a “clear and unequivocal stance that puts an end to any violation of sacred places.”
Conservative public figures in the US were quick to denounce the image of the Israeli soldier hitting the statue of Jesus. “Rotten,” wrote Matt Gaetz, former advisor to President Donald Trump and former congressman, when sharing the photo.
Former US Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also shared the image and wrote: “’Our greatest ally’ who takes billions of dollars from our taxes and guns every year.”
Polls indicate there has been a recent decline in support for Israel in the U.S. A recent survey by Pew Study Middle, a U.S.-based think tank, suggested that 60% of Americans had an unfavorable view of Israel, down from 53% last year.
Back in March, there was an international outcry after Israeli police prevented the top Roman Catholic leader in Jerusalem from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulcher to celebrate a Palm Sunday mass. Israeli police claimed it was a security measure due to the war with Iran.
Ambassador Huckabee called that episode an “unfortunate overreach that is already having significant repercussions around the world.”
Given that Israeli restrictions at the time allowed religious gatherings of up to 50 people, Huckabee said the decision to deny entry to church leaders was “difficult to understand or justify.”
A 2025 report from the Rossing Center, a Jerusalem-based organization whose goal is to foster better interfaith relations in the Holy Land, describes a “recent rise in overt animosity toward Christianity,” attributing it to “deepening polarization and ultranationalist political tendencies.”
in the middle of the fire
The incident occurred as thousands of Israeli soldiers continue to occupy a large area of southern Lebanon after a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Friday.
This has ended six weeks of fighting between the IDF and Hezbollah, although both sides have accused each other of violations.
The IDF has published a map showing what it calls an “advanced defense zone” over which it intends to keep the assist an eye fixed on. They say their goal is to stop Hezbollah from launching missiles into northern Israel and to prevent its operatives from attempting cross-border raids.
Hezbollah began airstrikes against Israel in support of Iran two days after IDF and US forces began bombing Iranian territory.
Israel began a military campaign on March 2 that has displaced more than a million Lebanese and killed more than 2,290 people, including 177 children and 100 health workers, according to Lebanese authorities.
Also 13 Israeli soldiers and two civilians have been killed by Hezbollah attacks in the same period, according to Israeli officials.
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