Tugendhat criticises Israel’s bar on Palm Sunday Mass at Holy Sepulchre
Former Tory minister says decision is 'worrying infringement of religious freedom'
Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat has criticised Israel’s decision to prevent senior Catholic clergy from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, calling it “a worrying infringement of religious freedom by the Israeli police.”
The intervention by one of Britain’s most prominent Catholic voices comes after Israeli police on Sunday blocked Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, and Fr. Francesco Ielpo, the Custos of the Holy Land, from entering one of Christianity’s most sacred sites.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog defended the police action, attributing it to “security concerns due to the continuous threat of missile attacks from the Iranian terror regime against the civilian population in Israel.”
The Latin Patriarchate said it marked the first time in centuries that Church leaders had been prevented from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at the site, which Christians believe to be the location of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection.
Tugendhat, who served as Security Minister in the last Tory government, posted on X linking to a joint statement from the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, writing: “News that the Patriarch of the Holy Land has not been allowed to celebrate Palm Sunday Mass in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is a worrying infringement of religious freedom by the Israeli police.”
The MP for Tonbridge is a noted supporter of Israel, making his criticism particularly striking.
During his time as Security Minister, he was sanctioned by Russia, China and Iran for his firm stance against authoritarian regimes.
Israeli police said all holy sites in Jerusalem’s Old City — including those sacred to Christians, Muslims and Jews — had been closed since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran, particularly locations without bomb shelters.
However, the Latin Patriarchate said the Church of the Holy Sepulchre had been hosting private Masses since the Iran war began on 28 February, and questioned why Sunday’s service — requested as a private ceremony behind closed doors — had been treated differently.
A spokesperson for the Patriarchate said police had been informed the Mass would be held privately, but “still despite this communication they insisted on acting this way.”
The Patriarchate described the decision as “a grave precedent” that “disregards the sensibilities of billions of people around the world who, during this week, look to Jerusalem.”
The Catholic Church called it “a manifestly unreasonable and grossly disproportionate measure.”
Herzog later said he had spoken to Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa adding: “I clarified that the incident stemmed from security concerns due to the continuous threat of missile attacks from the Iranian terror regime against the civilian population in Israel, following previous incidents in which Iranian missiles fell in the area of the Old City of Jerusalem in recent days.
“I reaffirmed the State of Israel’s unwavering commitment to freedom of religion for all faiths and to upholding the status quo at the holy sites of Jerusalem.”
But Cardinal Pizzaballa later said: “It is true that the police had said that the orders from the internal command prevented any kind of gathering in places where there is no shelter, but we had not asked for anything public, just a brief and small private ceremony to preserve the idea of the celebration in the Holy Sepulchre.
“There were no clashes; everything was done in a very polite manner. I do not want to force the issue; we want to use this situation to try to clarify better in the coming days what to do, in respect for everyone’s safety but also in respect for the right to prayer.”
US Ambassador to Israel Mick Huckabee also described the police action as an “unfortunate overreach,” noting that the four Catholic clergy involved were well below Israel’s own Home Front Command guidelines restricting gatherings to fifty people or fewer.
“For the Patriarch to be barred from entry to the Church on Palm Sunday for a private ceremony is difficult to understand or justify,” Huckabee wrote on X.
The incident drew swift condemnation from European leaders. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said preventing the Patriarch and Custos from entering “constitutes an offence not only to believers but against every community that recognises religious freedom,” with Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani summoning Israel’s ambassador to Rome.
Pope Leo, addressing tens of thousands in St Peter’s Square on Palm Sunday, said his prayers were “more than ever with the Christians of the Middle East, who are suffering the consequences of a brutal conflict.”
Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the most important week in the Christian calendar, leading to Easter.
Israel has indicated it will work with the Patriarch to accommodate a safe means of carrying out Holy Week activities in the days ahead.
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