Israeli President Reuven Rivlin with leaders of Jerusalem’s Christian community. Photo: Mark Neiman / GPO.

JNS.org – Israeli President Reuven Rivlin said the persecution of Middle East Christians was “a stain on humanity,” during a meeting on Wednesday with leaders of Jerusalem’s Christian community.

Rivlin told the religious figures that Israel’s thoughts were with the region’s oppressed Christian communities, including those murdered and wounded in the ongoing Syrian Civil War and those being attacked by Islamic State, including the dozens killed in twin suicide bombings in Egyptian Coptic churches on Palm Sunday.

The president noted that the Jewish people “know better than any what it means to pray in fear, and suffer from terrorism,” and vowed Israel would “protect your freedom of worship, your security and the security of your holy sites.”

Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa welcomed Rivlin’s statements, saying, “We want to thank you for this sensibility towards the Christian presence in the holy city, and in Israel in general. We appreciate your solidarity and clear words towards Christians.”