Palestinian activist launches campaign to protect Christian presence and church property

BEIT JALA / West Bank / PNN /

From the Wadi al-Makhrour valley near Beit Jala, Palestinian activist Alice Kisiya has launched an initiative she says aims to protect the Palestinian Christian presence and church property, while pushing for international recognition of Christians in Palestine and Israel as an indigenous minority deserving protection and the right to remain on their land.

Kisiya has introduced what she calls the “National Charter for Preserving Christian Presence and Church Property,” a campaign seeking to gather thousands of signatures from Palestinians in the West Bank, Jerusalem, within Israel and in the diaspora, alongside support from international institutions, to safeguard Christian-owned land and prevent its sale or transfer.

She said she has submitted documents and files to the U.S. Congress, the United Nations and other international organisations as part of a broader effort to secure recognition of Palestinian Christians as an indigenous community that has become a minority in the Holy Land and requires protection.

The initiative comes at a time when Palestinian Christian communities — a historic component of Palestinian society — face mounting challenges, including emigration, economic and political pressures, land disputes and what Kisiya describes as violations targeting church property.

“I do not want the next generation to live what we lived”

For Kisiya, the effort stems from personal experience rather than political activism. She said her family home in Wadi al-Makhrour was shelled in 2000, and that both the home and a family-owned restaurant were later demolished in 2019.

She said these experiences prompted her to establish a community-based organisation focused on development and defending land in areas classified as Area C of the West Bank, later expanding its scope to include the protection of Christian lands and property.

“I do not want the next generation to go through what we experienced,” she said. “I decided to stand up and speak the truth. I am not afraid.”

Kisiya said she chose not to wait for others to act. “I did not want to wait for anyone. I started from within myself, building an initiative to serve as a line of defence for Christian land across historic Palestine,” she said.

She stressed that protecting Christian land is not solely a Christian issue but part of preserving Palestinian land, history and diversity, noting that Palestinian Christians, as an indigenous community, have a deep-rooted connection to the Holy Land.

A charter for protection

Kisiya said the charter is designed as an open campaign for Palestinians at home and abroad, as well as international actors, to build a legal and popular base for protecting Christian presence and associated lands.

The campaign aims to collect thousands of signatures calling for the protection of Christian land and an end to violations, while also addressing what she described as internal challenges, including corruption.

She said accountability is needed for anyone found to be involved in the loss of Palestinian land, calling for legal action to halt such practices.

“We are working to stop any attempts to transfer land and to protect it from questionable deals,” she said, adding that the initiative also seeks to curb Christian emigration from the Holy Land.

Kisiya said the charter should serve as a national document embraced by both Christians and Muslims, arguing that preserving the Christian presence is integral to preserving Palestinian land and pluralism.

From recognition to the right of return

The initiative extends beyond protecting existing land. Kisiya said she aims to elevate the issue internationally and push for formal recognition of Palestinian Christians as an indigenous minority.

She said she has submitted files to international bodies, including the United Nations, to highlight the need for recognition and protection of Palestinian Christians.

Such recognition, she said, could pave the way for advocating the right of return for Palestinian Christians in the diaspora and their descendants.

“From there, we will demand the right of return for Palestinian Christians in particular, and Palestinians in general,” she said.

She called on the United Nations to take the document and its demands seriously, arguing that protecting indigenous minorities and preserving diversity in the Holy Land should be part of international responsibility.

Proposed national fund

Among the ideas Kisiya is promoting is the creation of a “national fund for Christians” aimed at supporting Palestinian Christian communities and helping them remain on their land.

She said the fund would prioritise supporting the right of return and providing assistance to Christian families through programmes designed to strengthen their presence and connection to their roots.

The initiative also includes encouraging Christians abroad to invest symbolically and directly in Palestine , such as planting trees or contributing funds to support local families.

Kisiya said such efforts could create a sustained and tangible link between Palestinian Christians in the diaspora and their homeland.

Bethlehem as a gateway

Kisiya places Bethlehem at the centre of her vision, citing its global significance in Christian history, and said she hopes to strengthen direct tourism links with Christian communities worldwide.

She also called for programmes encouraging Palestinian youth in the diaspora to visit or return to Palestine and Bethlehem through cultural and national initiatives.

She said the goal is to build direct partnerships between Palestinian institutions and international tourism bodies, independent of programmes she said are subject to Israeli control.

Kisiya added she is working on initiatives to encourage Christians interested in relocating to Palestine to settle there, noting that some in the diaspora have expressed a desire to move to Bethlehem.

She said restoring ties to the land requires more than political discourse, but also real opportunities for living, working, investing, tourism and education.

“We will not leave”

Kisiya called on international and regional Christian organisations to adopt the charter and support efforts to strengthen the presence of Palestinian Christians.

She stressed that Christians are not a transient community but “an integral and original part of the Palestinian people.”

“We will continue to live and remain. We will not leave,” she said.

However, she added that protecting this presence requires more than statements, pointing to past cases in which settlers were ordered removed from certain areas but later returned.

She argued that stronger legal and international mechanisms are needed, along with consistent follow-up to ensure enforcement on the ground.

A struggle over land and memory

For Kisiya, the effort to protect church property is inseparable from the broader struggle to preserve the Palestinian Christian presence.

Land, she said, is not merely a commodity but a space carrying the memory of families, churches and centuries of Christian presence in Palestine.

Her aim, she said, is to prevent that presence from becoming a historical memory and instead ensure that Christians remain on their land, with the possibility for those in the diaspora to return.

From Beit Jala, where her family experienced the impact of conflict firsthand, Kisiya said she chose to transform her personal experience into a wider initiative.

“I do not want to wait for anyone,” she said.

For her, the charter is not just a document for signatures, but an attempt to build a Palestinian and international front that sees protecting Christians as part of protecting Palestine itself.

In towns such as Beit Jala, Bethlehem and Beit Sahour, where church bells still blend with daily life, Kisiya said the struggle is not only over land, but over who will remain and carry its story to future generations.

This video was produced with financial support from CFI, Expertise France and the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the beneficiary and do not necessarily reflect the views of CFI, Expertise France or the European Union.