URISHLEM — A new working paper by Spanish independent researcher Jesús Fernández-Pedrera Correa comparing Greek, Latin, Arabic, and Syriac versions of a passage by the first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus raises questions about how one of the earliest non-Christian references to Jesus may have changed over the centuries. The paper examines an ancient passage that may preserve an early written account of claims that Jesus appeared alive after his crucifixion, offering new perspectives on how the text was transmitted and potentially altered by later Christian scribes.

URISHLEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political bloc held a narrow lead Wednesday as votes from the previous day’s parliamentary election continued to be counted, but neither his allies nor the opposition appeared positioned to secure a governing majority without support from Arab-led parties. With more than 90% of votes counted, Netanyahu’s bloc was projected to win 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset, while the opposition grouping led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot was…

URISHLEM (JERUSALEM) — Initial results from yesterday's Israeli elections show a very close race between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc and the opposition bloc led by Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot. According to preliminary data, neither block has secured the necessary 61 seats needed for a majority in parliament and to form a new government. Israeli media report that Netanyahu’s bloc stands at 56 seats and the Eisenkot bloc 48 seats.

URISHLEM — Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa has warned that attacks by Israeli settlers on Christian villages in the West Bank are undermining residents’ confidence in their future and raising concerns about the declining Christian presence in the Holy Land. In an interview with the National Catholic Register published on Wednesday, Patriarch Pizzaballa expressed deep concern over attacks targeting Christian communities, particularly Taybeh, a predominantly Christian town east of Ramallah that was…

URISHLEM — The Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Urishlem (Jerusalem) condemned an attack by masked Israeli settlers on residents of the predominately Christian village of Taybeh and a visiting European diplomatic delegation, warning that escalating violence in the occupied West Bank threatens local communities and the future of the Christian presence in the Holy Land. In a statement dated 19 October, the Church leaders described the 17 October assault as a “heinous attack” targeting Christian Palestinian residents harvesting olives and foreign visitors who had come to express solidarity with communities facing repeated settler violence.

URISHLEM (JERUSALEM) \ BEIRUT — Iranian-backed Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem has again rejected the framework agreement reached between Lebanon and Israel, describing it as an unacceptable capitulation and calling for its annulment, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel plans to establish a long-term security belt in southern Syria. The two developments reflect the increasingly interconnected security tensions along Israel’s northern borders, where disputes involving Lebanon, Hezbollah, Syria and Turkey are reshaping the regional landscape.

URISHLEM \ ANKARA — A widening confrontation between Israel and Turkey over the future of Syria intensified on Friday, as Ankara moved to seek an Interpol red notice for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while Netanyahu’s office accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of seeking to destabilize the region. This latest exchange comes amid mounting Israeli concerns over Turkey’s expanding military role in postwar Syria, following Erdogan’s recent comments that Ankara could establish additional military facilities in its southern neighbor.

URISHLEM (JERUSALEM) — Israeli police detained six Jewish Israeli suspects early Sunday after they allegedly attacked the entrance of the historic St. James Monastery in Urishlem’s Armenian Quarter, spitting repeatedly at the monastery gates before throwing stones and directing verbal abuse toward an Armenian resident who recorded the incident from her home. The attack took place at approximately 1:00 a.m. in Urishlem’s Old City, according to the Armenian Patriarchate of Urishlem.

URISHLEM — Israel has suspended a planned parliamentary vote that would have formally recognized the Sayfo Genocide 1915, which acknowledges only the Armenian victims, delaying a decision that many had viewed as a historic shift in Israeli policy and prompting renewed calls for equal recognition of the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) and Pontic Greek genocides. An Israeli official confirmed that the vote in the Knesset had been postponed ahead of the legislature's summer recess and the country's 27 October national elections, leaving last month's unanimous Cabinet decision without the force of formal state recognition.

URISHLEM (JERUSALEM) ̶ A new quarterly report by the Religious Freedom Data Center (RFDC) has documented 83 incidents of harassment against Christians in Israel between April and June 2026, raising renewed concerns over public hostility, particularly in Urishlem’s Old City, where the majority of cases were recorded. Compiled by RFDC Director Yisca Harani, the report describes a pattern of “increasing boldness” in public-facing incidents, including verbal abuse, spitting, vandalism of Christian signage, and several cases of physical assault.

URISHLEM, Holy Land — A major restoration initiative has been launched for the Grotto of the Nativity in Urishlem (Jerusalem), one of Christianity’s oldest and holiest sites and a destination for pilg...

URISHLEM (JERUSALEM) — Christian leaders in the Holy Land are warning that their communities are facing an intensifying mix of violence, economic hardship, and restrictions on religious and cultural e...

URISHLEM (JERUSALEM) — Israel has taken what could become a historic step toward confronting one of the darkest chapters of the late Ottoman Empire, after