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Armenian Patriarchate Warns of Israeli Threat to Seize Properties in East Jerusalem

February 27, 2025

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The Armenian Mirror-Spectator

215

JERUSALEM (Palestine Chronicle) — The Armenian Patriarchate in East Jerusalem warned on Wednesday, February 19, that Israel intended to confiscate its properties there, claiming that it has accrued debts since 1994.

“The hearing for the administrative petition filed by the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem is set for Monday, February 24, 2025,” the Patriarchate said in a statement this week.

It explained that the petition was filed “as an attempt to stop the foreclosure process against real estate properties that the Patriarchate has owned for centuries, so as to collect arnona (Municipal Tax) debts that have allegedly accrued since 1994.”

“If, God forbidding, the Patriarchate’s petition is denied, the Jerusalem Municipality will seize real estate properties belonging to the Patriarchate and put them up for auction in order to collect allegedly disputed debts that have never been proven in judicial proceedings, and through customary practices heretofore, have never been enforced,” the statement noted.

The statement further noted that the petition was aimed “at the actions of the collection officer,” an employee of the Jerusalem Municipality “who has ‘determined’ that the Patriarchate owes an astronomical debt, without regard for the statute of limitations, and without providing clear identification of the basis for the alleged debt.”

Furthermore, “a significant portion” of the alleged debt relates to a property that is actually leased to the municipality itself, said the statement.

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“The same municipal employee refuses to review the validity of the debt he himself determined, citing formal-procedural grounds that the deadline for objection has passed,” added the religious authority.

This is so, even though the Patriarchate demonstrated that “the claims were not properly delivered” to it within the required time frame.

“In other words, the municipal employee acts as the plaintiff, the judge, and the executor, all in one, serving the interests of his employer — the Municipality,” said the statement.

The foreclosure proceedings were temporarily suspended upon the filing of the petition. However, the Patriarchate warned that should the petition be denied, the Municipality will be permitted to “immediately resume” the seizure of specific properties.

‘Dangerous Legal Precedent’

“It will also establish a dangerous legal precedent that could legitimize the expropriation of property rights and the involuntary liquidation of assets belonging to the Christian religious institutions and communities in Israel,” said the statement.

The Armenian Mirror-Spectator

Topics: Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem, Israeli Taxes, Jerusalem Armenian Quarter

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“This would result in far greater harm to the property owners than the amount of the alleged disputed debts,” it added.

“To the best of our knowledge, the Armenian Patriarchate is the only Christian community chosen — and perhaps targeted — to face such unprecedented and irreversible measures due to the alleged Arnona debt,” the statement continued.

It said that the conduct of the municipality was “especially inappropriate” considering the municipality itself “owing the Patriarchate millions of shekels in overdue rental fees.”

“Filing against the Armenian Patriarchate in the execution office, forcing it to pay the alleged Arnona debt, and, even more so, proceeding with the foreclosure of its properties, could jeopardize” the authority’s “long-standing mission in the Holy Land, which has been active since the 7th century,” the statement noted.

It could also “threaten the continued existence of the Armenian community in the Holy Land, which dates back to the 4th century.”

It said the municipality’s action was “a clear attempt” to “undermine” the Patriarchate by “singling it out with economic pressure, with the aim of diminishing its presence in the Holy Land.”

The Patriarchate called upon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Interior Minister Moshe Arbel, and the head of the governmental committee, Tzachi Hanegbi, “to intervene decisively and immediately freeze all actions taken by the Municipality.”

“We also urge them to resume the meetings of this governmental committee in order to find an amicable resolution to this issue, solely through negotiation within the framework established by the committee,” the statement concluded.

Outcry from Churches

In a statement on Wednesday, the Patriarchs and Heads of Local Churches of Jerusalem issued a statement affirming its “steadfast solidarity” with the Armenian Patriarchate “in its pursuit of justice against an unjust foreclosure order.”

“This reckless move jeopardizes the Orthodox Armenian Patriarchate and sets a perilous precedent that could imperil Christian institutions throughout the Holy Land,” the statement added.

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) also condemned the municipality’s action saying that “Israel is set to tax, seize and auction off properties that have been owned for centuries” by the Armenian Patriarchate in Jerusalem.

“This illegal action represents a direct threat to the survival of the Armenian Christian Quarter and all the diverse faith-based communities” of the holy city, it added.

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