Holy Land
Number of projects
Although Christians in Israel form a minority of only around 2% of the total
lost their jobs. Pilgrims, once an important source of income for Christians in the Holy Land, have also stayed away. Unemployment among Christians rose to a record 78% during the reporting year. Following the brutal attack by Hamas on 7 October 2023, ACN quickly launched extensive emergency aid to support Christian families directly impacted by the humanitarian crisis in the wake of the attack. These aid packages included life-saving medication, food vouchers and grants towards school and tuition fees, as well as subsidies for housing costs. In order to stabilise the country’s Christian community in the long term, the future of young Christians is very important to us. To this end, we also support training initiatives for young people, enabling them to gain the required qualifications and later earn a living. Once again, those who envision a future in their country have no reason to emigrate.
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Type of projects
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3
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population, they still represent a significant community. Whilst many local Christians have emigrated, the overall number is increasing, as many, mostly young people, come to the Holy Land to work in caring for the sick and elderly. In this way, up to 100,000 Christians have moved to Israel in recent years. The Church is particularly concerned about the situation of migrants. The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem has set up vicariates for the pastoral care of migrants. ACN works closely with the local Latin Church. The crisis in the Gaza Strip has further exacerbated the difficult situation for Christians in the Palestinian territories. Due to the closure of the border between Israel and the West Bank, many have
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Head of Section Tony Zender
66 | ACN Activity Report 2024
| Middle East – Holy Land
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