Taybeh – West Bank – Spanish News Agency (EFE) – Patricia Martínez Sastre – Translated by “Nabd El-Haya”
The streets of Taybeh, the only entirely Christian-majority town in the West Bank, are nearly empty. Not a single restaurant remains open, job opportunities are scarce, and Israeli settlers spread fear on an almost daily basis. A large portion of its approximately 1,200 residents — especially young people — are now considering leaving.
“We are in danger. This land may be emptied of Christians, but we, as Christians, as a Church, will not allow that,” said Fr. Bashar Fawadleh, parish priest of Christ the Redeemer Church of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem (Catholic) and one of the town’s most outspoken voices, in remarks to the Spanish News Agency.
Settler Attacks
The ringing of the bells from the town’s three hilltop churches — Christ the Redeemer (Latin), the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, and the Greek Orthodox Church — blends into the warm, slow-moving air, a reminder that life continues despite an overwhelming sense of stagnation.
A young Palestinian who gave his name as “Issa” (a pseudonym) says he hopes to move to Spain. He is studying the language through the Duolingo app and can pronounce a few words such as “apple.” He says work is almost nonexistent and that several of his friends have emigrated since October 7, 2023.
Settler attacks were frequent before, but they have intensified across the West Bank since then, amid government policies encouraging the expansion of new outposts, the issuance of firearm licenses, and rapid access to roads, water, vehicles, and basic services.
On December 5, settlers burned two cars in Taybeh and spray-painted a shipping container with the Hebrew phrase “Freedom for Israel,” alongside a Star of David. A similar attack was repeated in early February.
In late June 2025, armed Israelis attacked Taybeh and the nearby village of Kafr Malik, setting homes and vehicles on fire. Three Palestinians were shot dead in Kafr Malik, though it remains unclear whether the gunfire came from settlers or Israeli soldiers.
Days later, on July 8, 2025 settlers set fire to the surroundings of the ruins of the fifth-century Church of St. George in Taybeh, as well as the adjacent town cemetery.
The attack prompted a visit by the Patriarchs of the Christian Churches in the Holy Land, who expressed in a joint statement their concern over “the prevailing climate of impunity” and criticized Israeli police for referring only to material damage while ignoring “a broader context of intimidation and systematic abuses.”
Noticeable Population Decline
Since October 7, 2023, around 15 families — approximately 70 people — have left the town, according to Fr. Fawadleh. Since 2016, the population has declined by about 300 residents, based on civil registry data he provided.
The priest acknowledges that many are planning to emigrate from Taybeh and the West Bank in general — Palestinians require special permits to enter or work in Israel, including East Jerusalem — and calls on the international community, particularly the United States, to pressure Israel “if they want Palestinian Christians to remain.”
“We are Christians and we will not leave our town. But unfortunately, many people are thinking of leaving this city, this country. When the Holy Land, the homeland of Jesus, is emptied of Christianity, that will mean darkness for the entire world,” he said.
In Taybeh, the Latin Patriarchate forms a central pillar of local life, operating a school, a medical center, a media platform, a home for the elderly, guesthouses, and four religious’ congregations, in addition to an olive oil press and sports, music, and traditional dabke groups.
Emigration as a Last Resort
Settlers also target olive groves — the town’s primary source of livelihood — and obstruct Palestinian farmers’ access to their land.
During EFE’s visit, about five settlers — some appearing to be minors — trespassed onto a resident’s land with their sheep. When they noticed the journalists’ car, two of them blocked the road with their vehicles in a threatening manner, temporarily preventing passage.
An elderly resident of Taybeh, who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation, said he has not visited his land on the outskirts of the town for three years. He owns around 100 olive trees there. “They take the law into their own hands,” he said of the settlers.
Fr. Fawadleh went further: “We are under the restrictions of the extremist Israeli government — Smotrich, Ben Gvir, and Netanyahu. They want to establish the Kingdom of Israel. That is their dream,” he concluded, pointing to the forced displacement in the Jordan Valley and the E1 settlement plan aimed at separating East Jerusalem from the West Bank, and to what many Palestinians see as their only remaining option: “to emigrate from this land.”