In the West Bank’s last Christian village, faith, fear and an uncertain future

TAYBEH, West Bank — A tourist brochure for Taybeh invites visitors to discover the quiet hilltop village, known as the last entirely Palestinian Christian community in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. But today, the invitation feels hollow. Deputy Mayor Khaldoon Hanna, who also runs a restaurant on the village’s main street, says that the flow of visitors has all but vanished. His once-busy dining room now sits nearly empty, dust collecting on tables and only one working faucet left unrepaired. Over the past two years, he estimates that fewer than 20 tourists have come through his doors.

Hanna says it’s no mystery why people are staying away. Reaching Taybeh requires navigating a maze of Israeli checkpoints, and residents regularly encounter increasingly aggressive settlers who have targeted the village with property destruction and arson. In July, locals say settlers even tried to torch the ruins of the ancient Church of St. George; Israeli officials say the cause of the fire is not confirmed. Regardless, Hanna feels Christians in Taybeh are under constant pressure. Without outside help, he warns, the community could soon disappear.

Life for Palestinians in this part of the West Bank has long been tense, but the situation has grown more dangerous since the October 2023 Hamas attacks and the ensuing Israeli military campaign. According to the United Nations, more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and armed settlers during that period. Extremist settler groups, particularly the Hilltop Youth, have intensified their campaign of intimidation and land seizures, targeting Palestinians of all backgrounds.

The U.N. reports that more than 1,000 settler attacks occurred in the West Bank through August of this year, putting 2024 on pace to be the most violent year on record. Olive harvest season has become a flashpoint: during October alone, Palestinians reported 126 attacks in 70 different communities—far more than the previous year. Thousands of olive trees were destroyed, many in areas around Ramallah, where Taybeh is located and where settler outposts have been expanding.

Taybeh, a village of just 1,200 people, has been particularly affected. Christians make up only a tiny percentage of the Palestinian population today, a dramatic decline from the mid-20th century. Taybeh’s residents have historically relied on tourism and their agricultural harvests, and the village once hosted a lively Oktoberfest event that drew thousands. But with security worsening and the economic situation deteriorating, even a handful of families leaving has a major impact. Over the last two years, ten families have emigrated, according to Father Jack-Nobel Abed of the Greek Melkite Catholic Church.

Father Abed, a vocal advocate for maintaining a Christian presence in the Holy Land, says he urges community members to stay but understands why some feel they cannot. He recently confronted U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee—an outspoken supporter of the settler movement—telling him not to ease the path for local Christians to emigrate. But at the same time, he said parents cannot be blamed for leaving when they fear for their children’s safety or future.

Abed criticizes Christian Zionist supporters who, he argues, profess concern for Christians in the region while ignoring the pressures pushing them out. “Who are you to speak for me?” he asked.

Israeli authorities say they try to prevent settler violence and require Palestinians to coordinate visits to lands near settlements. But Palestinians report that even with advance permission, settlers often prevent them from accessing their land, and areas previously open have been effectively taken over. Prosecution is rare: an Israeli rights group found that more than 93 percent of investigations into settler offenses over nearly two decades ended without indictments.

Meanwhile, many Palestinians say the distinction between settlers and the Israeli military has blurred since the Gaza war. Hanna believes both aim to push Palestinians into despair and out of their homes. Settler leaders are explicit about their goals; one recently posted that growing Palestinian hopelessness is evidence of success.

Yet not all Palestinians are giving up. Madees Khoury, who manages the family-owned Taybeh Brewing Company, says she plans to stay despite the worsening climate. Her family returned to the village from the United States in the early 1990s, inspired by the promise of peace after the Oslo Accords. She grew up in the brewery and remembers childhoods marked by checkpoints, closures, and tear gas.

Business is now down 70%, and transporting goods can take days instead of hours because of Israeli restrictions. Still, the brewery has used the slowdown to build a new facility—an act of resilience even as settler attacks continue. Khoury says some families are preparing to emigrate, and she cannot fault them, but she insists her place is in Taybeh. Pressure from the United States, she argues, is the only thing that might curb the escalating violence.

Despite Israel’s self-presentation as a defender of religious freedom, anti-Christian incidents have increased. A recent report counted more than a hundred attacks on Christians and Christian property across Israel and the West Bank in the past year. Khoury says the message is unmistakable: “As long as you’re Palestinian, they’ll attack you.”

Still, she remains determined. Walking through the new brewery, she says her family has chosen to invest in the village even as the risks grow. As she put it, they intend to remain rooted in the place they’ve always called home.

“This is our home,” she said. “And we’re not leaving.”

Source: Los Angeles Times