In her native Syria, writes Hadeel Oueis, her fellow Christians tended to look favorably on the regime, brutal though it was. In their view, it at least provided them with a modicum of protection—which they could lose if they ever proved unfaithful. Oueis explains that this attitude is typical of Middle Eastern Christian communities, with one exception:
Palestinian Christians . . . publicly criticize Israel and advocate for the abolition of the Jewish state, despite the fact that if this were to occur, the Christians of Palestine would be the first to suffer. The Palestinian Christians, as most of the Christians in the region, are treated unequally and face many challenges posed by Islamists in the West Bank and Gaza. Hamas and the Palestinian Authority itself were responsible for many human-rights violations against Christians that included land theft, denial of employment, and economic boycotts. In Gaza and other cities controlled by the PA, Muslims who have converted to Christianity are at the greatest risk. They are often left defenseless against cruelty by radical Islamists who murdered some converts or indigenous Christians.
Despite this, many Palestinian Christian influencers and intellectuals continued to complain publicly about Israel’s treatment of them. . . . Much of Arabic-speaking Christian intellectuals’ strong hostility to Israel is motivated by the Islamic persecutions they endured. These Christians intended to demonstrate to Muslims that they shared an enemy.
Despite their efforts, however, Palestinian Christians have never been treated equally by organizations such as Hamas. . . . . Many Palestinian Muslims refused to mourn Shireen Abu Akleh, the Palestinian deceased journalist who spent her life opposing Israel, because she’s not a Muslim.
The answer for improving the life of Christians in Israel is not to support the rhetoric of Islamist organizations and militias like Hamas or to collaborate with their sympathizers like the CAIR organization in the United States. . . . Fragile U.S. backing for Israel would only lead to another civil war in the Middle East, which could jeopardize the few Christians left in the region.
Read more on Christian Post: https://www.christianpost.com/voices/christians-in-the-middle-east-benefit-from-a-strong-israel.html