Bethlehem Church of the Nativity priest denied visa to speak at US event

Father Issa Thaljieh, the Palestinian parish priest at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, in the occupied West Bank, has been denied a US visa to speak alongside American clergy next week on the gravity of Israeli settler attacks on Palestinian villages. "Our government denied him a visa for 'security reasons'. A parish priest from Bethlehem, treated as a threat. That should worry all of us, because it means the people living through this are being kept from telling us about it," Laila Mokhiber, a volunteer with Orthodox Christians for Palestine (OCP), told Middle East Eye on Thursday. MEE has reached out to the State Department. Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant leaders are set to gather at the United Methodist Building near the US Capitol on Monday to demand that Congress hold accountable both settlers and the Israeli military, and also curb US weapons transfers to Israel. Read more: Bethlehem Church of the Nativity priest denied visa to speak at US event Father Issa Thaljieh, parish priest at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, in the occupied West Bank, speaks in a video posted to his Instagram account, on 28 December 2023 (Screengrab/@fatherissathaljieh)