Anglican Bishops Express Concern Over Arrest of Palestinian Christian Student
In a recent development that has drawn international attention, four Anglican bishops have voiced their “deep dismay and disquiet” concerning the arrest of Natalie Abu Dayyeh, a Palestinian Christian student accused of “promoting terrorist activities” by Israeli authorities.
Natalie Abu Dayyeh, a student at Birzeit University and a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, was reportedly subjected to a violent arrest on June 2nd alongside three other Palestinian women, which led to her detention.
The situation with Abu Dayyeh follows closely on the heels of another case involving a Palestinian Christian woman who was recently released by Israeli authorities.
Layan Nasir, affiliated with St Peter’s Anglican Church in Birzeit, faced her first arrest in 2021 over alleged membership in the Democratic Progressive Student Pole (DPSP), a left-wing group banned by Israel. She was initially detained for two months, released on bail, but later re-arrested in April 2024 and held for eight months without charges in administrative detention due to purported security threats.
Nasir’s ordeal continued with another arrest in 2025 for reasons that remain unclear, leading to a further eight-month detention before her release.
Bishop Imad Haddad of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land expressed profound shock and horror upon learning of Abu Dayyeh’s arrest, highlighting the family’s initial uncertainty about her whereabouts.
In a statement, Bishop Haddad commented, “We are incredibly disturbed by the reality that Natalie now joins the thousands of Palestinians in Israeli detention without charge or trial.”
He further noted, “Palestinian civilians, including women and children, suffer deep injustice in Israeli military detention and are often held for months or years with no explanation,” urging Christians worldwide to advocate for them.
The Anglican bishops of Chelmsford, Gloucester, Norwich, and Southwark have conveyed their support to Bishop Haddad through a letter expressing concern over the hardships faced by Abu Dayyeh and Nasir, as well as their families.
In their letter, the bishops remarked, “Although we don’t know the exact circumstances of her [Abu Dayyeh’s] arrest, we know from our efforts praying for and advocating for the release of Layan Nasir … that incarcerating people who have not been convicted or even charged with anything for lengthy periods of time, based on secret ‘evidence’ that they cannot challenge, is an extreme power and one that inflicts incredible torment and suffering on the detained and their family.”
The bishops assured continued prayers for Abu Dayyeh and mentioned raising her case in the House of Lords, also accusing Israel of breaching the Geneva Convention by detaining her outside occupied territory.
The letter concluded with a passage from the Psalms: “He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free.”
This article was originally written by www.christiantoday.com
