3 Palestinians arrested on suspicion of torching a Christmas tree at a Catholic church in West Bank
Source: AP
By MELANIE LIDMAN
Updated 5:55 AM CST, December 25, 2025
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Three Palestinians have been arrested on suspicion of setting fire to a Christmas tree and damaging part of a Nativity scene at a Catholic Church in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Palestinian Authority police said.
Police said late Wednesday that the arrests were made after reviewing surveillance footage. Police said they seized tools from the suspects that they believe were used in the attack, and condemned the apparent attempt to incite sectarian and religious tensions in the West Bank.
The Holy Redeemer Church of Jenin posted photos on social media of the arson, showing the skeleton of a synthetic Christmas tree that had been gutted of the green plastic branches, with red and gold ornaments strewn across the courtyard. The church said that the attack occurred around 3 a.m. Monday and also damaged part of the Nativity scene.
The church quickly cleaned the burned tree and erected a new Christmas tree a day later, in time for Christmas Mass. The church held a special ceremony with the presence of local Muslim and Christian leaders and politicians. Rev. Amer Jubran, the local priest at the church, said that the torching was an isolated incident and stressed the city’s unity.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-jenin-christmas-church-arson-42e414f12db362dc5a0fab862a5e2c23