BEIRUT, (PIC)
A recent photo of an Israeli soldier smashing a statue of Jesus Christ with a sledgehammer in southern Lebanon has sparked widespread condemnation.
The soldier was filmed smashing the statue in the Christian village of Debel in southern Lebanon, according to news reports on Sunday.
A local priest, Fadi Falfel, said the cross was part of a small shrine in the garden of a family living on the edge of the village.
“One of the Israeli soldiers broke the cross and did this horrible thing, this desecration of our holy symbols,” he said.
Commenting on social media, Ayman Odeh, a Palestinian member of the Israeli parliament, wrote: “We’ll wait to hear the police spokesperson claim that ‘the soldier felt threatened by Jesus.’”
Ahmad Tibi, another Palestinian member of the Knesset, wrote on Facebook that those who blow up mosques and churches in Gaza and spit on Christian clergy in Jerusalem without punishment are not afraid to destroy a statue of Jesus Christ and publish it.
Israeli officials confirmed the authenticity of the image and claimed they launched an investigation into the incident.
