Israel Appoints George Deek Special Envoy To Christian World After Incidents Targeting Religious Sites

Israel appointed its first-ever special envoy for the Christian world on Thursday, April 23, announced by Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, as the country faced “increasing pressure and negative diplomatic reactions.”

“FOCUS Israel attempts to restore its image among Western Christians The appointment of a special envoy responsible for relations with Christian communities comes after several incidents targeting religious sites and figures”

L'Orient Today

Saar said, “The State of Israel attaches great importance to its relations with the Christian world and with its Christian friends,” and added that the new envoy, George Deek, would help to “deepen friendship and strengthen ties.”

TRT World

The role was created after “several incidents targeting religious sites and figures,” according to L'Orient Today’s account of the appointment.

TRT World similarly framed the move as an effort to “calm Christian world” tensions after incidents that included an Israeli soldier smashing a Jesus statue in Lebanon.

The Times of Israel described the appointment as “intended to deepen Israel’s ties with Christian communities around the world,” and said the ministry announced the creation of the role “amid a series of damaging scandals.”

In the same reporting, Deek was identified as a veteran diplomat who most recently served as Israel’s ambassador to Azerbaijan and as a member of the Arab Christian community in Jaffa, while his father, Youssef Deek, was described as having served as Chairman of the Orthodox Christian community in Jaffa and Israel.

The appointment followed controversies around access to Christian holy sites and worship, including an episode at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre during Palm Sunday.

TRT World said Israeli police prevented Catholic leaders from celebrating Palm Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and that the move sparked “widespread criticism from global leaders and religious institutions over freedom of worship.”

TRT World

It added that the decision was later reversed after international backlash, with Israeli officials allowing access to resume, while the episode “highlighted growing tensions around religious access in Jerusalem's holy sites.”

The Times of Israel described the same event as Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa and “other senior clergy” being “barred by police from Palm Sunday worship at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre due to wartime restrictions.”

It then said that “authorities quickly backtracked” and that “a framework allowing limited prayer at the holy site was later approved with the police after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed that Pizzaballa be granted ‘full and immediate access’ to the church.”

L'Orient Today tied the envoy’s creation to “a series of controversies involving Christian sites, figures and symbols,” which it said had drawn “heightened international attention.”

Another incident described across the reports involved an Israeli soldier and a Jesus statue in Lebanon, which TRT World called “a global firestorm.”

“FOCUS Israel attempts to restore its image among Western Christians The appointment of a special envoy responsible for relations with Christian communities comes after several incidents targeting religious sites and figures”

Today

TRT World said “an Israeli soldier set off a global firestorm by smashing a statue of Jesus Christ in Lebanon,” and specified that “Two soldiers have been sentenced to jail for 30 days after outrage over a video depicting a soldier using a jackhammer to smash the head of a statue of Jesus Christ in the town of Deir Siryan.”

The Times of Israel also reported that “an Israel Defense Forces soldier was photographed smashing astatue of Jesuswith a sledgehammer in the southern Lebanon village of Debel,” and said the soldier “was removed from combat duty and sentenced to jail following an investigation.”

It further stated that the incident was condemned by “the leaders of the Catholic churches in the Holy Land” as “a grave affront to the Christian faith and adds to other reported incidents of desecration of Christian symbols by IDF soldiers in southern Lebanon.”

L'Orient Today linked the envoy’s creation to “controversies involving Christian sites, figures and symbols,” while TRT World explicitly connected the envoy appointment to the statue incident by placing it in the headline.

The Times of Israel added that Netanyahu posted on X condemning the destruction of the statue of Jesus, attempting to portray Israel as a haven for Christians, and it quoted Netanyahu’s claim that “Israel is the only country in the region that the Christian population and standard of living is growing.”

Beyond the high-profile Palm Sunday and statue episodes, TRT World described repeated incidents of damage, vandalism, and violence against Christian sites across Israel, the occupied West Bank, “genocide-hit Gaza,” and adjacent areas.

It said “In many cases, Israeli military forces, illegal Jewish settlers, or extremist individuals have been identified as the perpetrators or otherwise involved,” and it described Israeli officials expressing regret and opening investigations in specific cases involving churches, including “strikes on the Church of Saint Porphyrius —one of the world’s oldest churches.”

TRT World

TRT World also said that in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, “the majority of such incidents have been attributed to Jewish extremist settlers or ultra-nationalist individuals,” sometimes referred to as “price tag” attacks.

It then provided a quantified record from the Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue, stating that the organization “recorded 89 incidents in 2023, 111 in 2024, and 155 in 2025.”

The Times of Israel offered a different but related quantification, citing “A 2024 Annual Report by the Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue” that documented “111 reported cases of attacks against Christians,” including “46 physical attacks, 35 attacks against church properties, and 13 cases of harassment.”

It added that “most perpetrators appear to belong to the ultra-Orthodox and national-religious communities,” and that “The majority of the victims are clergy or people wearing visible Christian symbols.”

The reports also connect the envoy appointment to Israel’s internal policy framing and to demographic claims about Christians in Israel, while describing how the appointment is meant to address strained relationships with Christian communities.

“FOCUS Israel attempts to restore its image among Western Christians The appointment of a special envoy responsible for relations with Christian communities comes after several incidents targeting religious sites and figures”

L'Orient Today

The Times of Israel said the incidents “highlighted a lack of clear policy” and that they “threaten to undermine Israel’s ties with the Evangelical Christian community, who are among Israel’s most ardent supporters internationally.”

TRT World

It then placed Israel’s demographic argument alongside Netanyahu’s statements, noting that “Israel’s Christians account for 1.9 percent of the country’s population” and that the Christian population “grew by 0.7% from 2023 to 2024,” citing Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.

The Times of Israel further stated, “Some 184,200 Christians currently live in Israel,” and listed cities including “Nazareth has the largest Christian population with 18,900, followed by Haifa (18,800), Jerusalem (13,400) and Nof HaGalil (10,800).”

L'Orient Today described the envoy as part of an official diplomatic effort to “consolidate relations with Christian communities around the world,” while also characterizing it as “more in line with crisis management.”

TRT World described Deek as “a veteran diplomat and former ambassador to Azerbaijan” and said he is “a member of Israel's Arab Christian community,” positioning the envoy as someone intended to strengthen ties with Christian communities.