Agence France Presse — English
October 18, 2004 Monday

NATO chief starts tour of Central Asia

BRUSSELS

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer left Brussels on Monday on his first trip as
NATO secretary general to Central Asia where he will seek to step up
cooperation between the Atlantic Alliance and the strategic region,
his press office said.

De Hoop Scheffer’s tour will take him to Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan,
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, meeting with the president
of each country, the office said in a statement.

He is accompanied by his new special representative for the Caucasus
and Central Asia, Robert Simmons, a former US State Department
official.

In Istanbul in late June, heads of state and government of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization called for heightened cooperation with
the strategically important Central Asian countries.

The five former Soviet republics are represented on the Euro-Atlantic
Partnership Council, a body set up for consultation between NATO and
partner states. The five countries also take part in the Partnership
for Peace program aimed at encouraging reforms in members’ defense
structures.

De Hoop Scheffer also plans visits in the coming weeks to Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Georgia.

Agence France Presse — English
October 18, 2004 Monday

Jewish religious student apologies for spitting at Armenian
archbishop

JERUSALEM

A Jewish religious student who spat at an Armenian archbishop during
a religious procession in Jerusalem’s Old City last week has
apologised for his behaviour, a police spokesman said Monday.

Natan Zvi Rosental, a student at the prestigious Har Hamor yeshiva,
or Jewish seminary, formally apologised to Archbishop Nourhan
Manougian at a meeting in a police station, spokesman Shmulik Ben
Ruby told AFP.

Manougian had said he accepted the apology as his faith taught
forgiveness.

The incident took place during a religious procession when Rosental
spat at the archbishop’s feet, causing the priest to react
physically, according to Ben Ruby.

A brawl broke out, during which Rosental ripped the cross from around
the archbishop’s neck. The two were separated and police arrested the
student.

Despite the apology, police were still likely to charge Rosental with
“insulting” the archbishop and could even add further charges for
attacking him, Ben Ruby said.

In defence of his actions, Rosental said he had been brought up to
see Christianity as idol worship, which is forbidden by the Torah,
the Jewish holy book, Haaretz newspaper reported.

Haaretz has said the student spat at the cross being carried during
the procession as well as at the archbishop, who reacted by slapping
him.

“To approach in the middle of a religious procession and to spit on
the cross in front of all the priests of the sect is humiliation that
we are not prepared to accept,” Manougian said.

“The Israeli government … cries out in the face of any harm done to
Jews all over the world, but is simply not interested at all when we
(Christians) are humiliated on an almost daily basis,” he said,
quoted by Haaretz.

The 3,000-strong Armenian community live in the Armenian quarter of
the Old City and many Jews walk through it on their way from west
Jerusalem to the Wailing Wall.

Christian clergy at an emergency meeting of parliament’s interior and
environment committee called to discuss the abuse of Christians by
Orthodox Jews in the Old City said the practise was widespread but
rarely reported.

Vandalism of church property has also been reported in recent months,
with Jewish graffiti scrawled on the Georgian-built Monastery of the
Cross in west Jerusalem.

Three months ago, an 11th-century fresco in the same church was
defaced by unknown assailants.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

United Press International
October 19, 2004 Tuesday 11:33 AM Eastern Time

Ordeal of a Lebanese hostage in Iraq

By SALAH TAKIEDDINE

BEIRUT, Lebanon

“Welcome to the city that does not greet spies,” reads a large banner
that was raised at the entrance of Fallujah, the Iraqi city that
became well known around the world for being the hotbed of Iraqi
Sunni insurgents and suspected hideouts of notorious al-Qaida
operatives Abu Masaab al Zarqawi.

This was the first thing Aram Nalbandian saw when he headed to
Fallujah along with his workmate Sharbel al-Hajj and their Iraqi
driver on what was supposed to be a usual business trip on Sept. 27.

The three were not “spies,” but it took 27 days in captivity and much
of luck before their kidnappers admitted this reality.

“The mujahedin, wearing black hoods, stopped us at the checkpoint and
checked our identification cards. They knew we are Lebanese, and
that’s why they arrested us,” Nalbandian told United Press
International from his bedside at the American University Hospital in
Beirut shortly after his release in Iraq and return to his homeland.

He painfully recalled how he was blindfolded and taken to a house
“where there were other Iraqi hostages.”

“They started beating us, and I heard my friends screaming. So I knew
we are all together,” he said.

The beatings continue as the kidnappers showered them with questions:
Are you dealing with the U.S. forces, and do you do business with the
U.S. bases? Are you helping the government of Iraqi Prime Minister
Iyad Allawi and his ministries?

“The kidnappers consider not only the U.S. forces but also Allawi’s
government as their enemies,” Nalbandian said.

On the first interrogation night, Nalbandian knew the name of the
kidnappers’ chief: “Abul Ghadab” (Father of Wrath in Arabic).

“You have the honor to be with me. Do you know who I am? I am Abul
Ghadab: I was (deposed Iraqi President) Saddam Hussein’s personal
executioner,” said Nalbandian, recalling his kidnapper’s proper
words. “He started to beat me and warned that every time I scream in
pain I will be punished by three more lashes.”

Such daily interrogation, which lasted for 10 days, usually started
at 10 p.m. and stopped at 4:30 a.m. when kidnappers leave to perform
the dawn’s prayers.

“Every second, every minute, we were facing death,” Nalbandian said,
noting that he heard about the beheading of British hostage Kenneth
Bigley from his own kidnappers.

“Bigley was not with us. The mujahedin told us about his beheading,”
he said. “It was a psychological war all the time.”

Nalbandian escaped beheading, but he was very close to death when
U.S. warplanes hit the house where the Lebanese were held captive in
Fallujah.

“The mujahedin were out of the house when a missile hit it. The
ceiling collapsed on us and suddenly, it was all dark,” he recalled.

Nalbandian and al-Hajj were wounded. Their Iraqi driver, who was held
simply because he was accompanying the two Lebanese, was killed under
the rubble.

“Before we were pulled out by the mujahedin seven hours later, I
thought: No one outside this house knows we are here or even exist,”
Nalbandian said. “It’ s so funny: We escaped beheading just to die in
a U.S. air raid.”

With tears in his eyes, he recalled the slain Iraqi driver: “Poor
Ahmad. He was 28 years old, father of six, and his wife expecting
twins. He was earning just $150 a month.

Nalbandian said Fallujah was under surveillance by U.S. warplanes and
helicopters, which used to swoop over the city several times day and
night.

Despite their wounding, the U.S. bombardment did some good: The
kidnappers apparently felt guilty, and things took a different turn.

The beatings stopped. Nalbandian and al-Hajj were turned over to
another group of insurgents headed by someone who identified himself
as Sheikh Khaled al-Irani.

Al-Irani, who said he was an Iraqi cleric, explained why he joined
the resistance.

“The Americans occupied our country to help us get rid of Saddam’s
regime and were supposed to leave while we take over power,” he told
Nalbandian. “But they came to kill our children and women. The least
thing I can do is to resist occupation.”

To al-Irani, anyone who even carries a glass of water to the U.S.
forces or their Iraqi allies “is my enemy regardless of his religion
or confession. That’s why I am fighting.”

Nalbadian himself is a Christian Armenian but was released unharmed
after it was proven that al-Hajj, also a Christian, and he were not
working for the U.S. forces. The kidnappers even returned a $50,000
ransom paid by their Lebanese employer to secure their freedom.

“They did not take money from us and returned the ransom because they
were sure we were not collaborating with their enemies,” Nalbandian
said.

Dozens other hostages were not so lucky. From among more than 100 so
far taken hostages in Iraq by several shadowy groups, nearly 30 —
including British, Italians, Americans, Turkish, Jordanians,
Nepalese, Egyptians, Macedonians and one Lebanese — were executed by
their kidnappers.

A great number of Iraqis were believed to have faced the same fate
for the same reason. Their number however is unknown.

As Abul Ghadab explained to Nalbandian about the insurgents’
infrastructure, Fallujah itself has some 260 mosques “each of which
has an imam then an emir who is the leader of the group and countless
groups of mujahedin.” Knowing their exact number proved to be a
difficult task.

Is al-Zirqawi among them? Does he really exist?

“Difficult to say. I did not see him. I cannot confirm or deny this,”
said Nalbandian, who still can’t believe he is alive and back in
Beirut.

It will take him long time before he overcomes his ordeal considers
returning to Iraq.

Nalbandian was like many other Lebanese, Arabs and Westerners who
were lured by the great – although risky – business opportunities in
Iraq.

Although he holds a BA in Business Administration from the
prestigious American University of Beirut, 47-year-old Nalbandian
found himself jobless in Lebanon due to the deteriorating economic
conditions and growing unemployment rate.

So Iraq’s attraction to secure a decent living for his family of
three children was tempting despite the dangers.

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
October 19, 2004 Tuesday 10:09 AM Eastern Time

Baku counts on Moscow in dealing with Karabakh problem

By Veronika Romanenkova

MOSCOW

Baku hopes that Moscow will help Azerbaijan achieve the settlement of
the Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

“We are hoping Russia will continue to exert efforts (to bring about
a settlement over Nagorno-Karabakh) as our neighbor and co-chairman
of the OSCE Minsk Group,” President Ilham Aliyev said at a meeting in
the Kremlin with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Russian leader looked back on the recent meeting of the
presidents of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia.

“I am certain that there will be a chance to discuss one of the worst
problems existing in the Caucasus, that of Nagorno-Karabakh, in a
calm situation,” he said.

“That you participated in the meeting with the Armenian president
makes on hopeful we shall be able to make progress,” Ilham Aliyev
said.

Earlier on Tuesday Putin said that Russia would continue active
peace-making and negotiating activities alongside Azerbaijan and
other CIS countries in eliminating the intricate bundle of
contradictions in the Caucasus.

“Our country is extremely interested in the peaceful and stable
development of this affluent region,” Putin said.

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
October 19, 2004 Tuesday

Turkey integration with EU to help Ankara-Yerevan normalization

By Alan Badov

ROME

Turkey’s integration with the European Union will open new vistas in
the normalization of relations between Ankara and Yerevan, Armenian
Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan said at a Tuesday press conference
in Rome.

‘There are no diplomatic relations between Turkey and Armenia at
present, and the border is closed, which complicates the economic
position of Armenia,” he said.

Yet the foreign minister is skeptical about the Turkish ability to
meet EU accession requirements on time.

Oskanyan also touched upon the situation in Abkhazia and South
Ossetia. “Armenia has direct interest in the stability in Russia’
North Caucasus and peace settlement between Tbilisi, South Ossetia
and Abkhazia,” the minister told Itar-Tass.

He said the Caucasus is a single whole, interests of regional
countries are intertwined, and problems of any country have a
negative effect on others.

ANSA English Media Service
October 19, 2004

VATICAN CALLS FOR CATHOLIC LEGAL RIGHTS IN TURKEY

Vatican City

(ANSA) – Vatican City, October 19 – A senior Vatican
official has called on Turkey to grant legal recognition to
the Catholic community in the giant Muslim country.

Monsignor Pietro Parolin, undersecretary of the
Vatican’s ‘foreign ministry’, noted that the Catholic Church
had been pushing for guarantees of religious freedom in
Turkey for several years.

The Vatican wants to negotiate a formal accord with the
Turkish state which establishes rights and duties on both
sides. The accord would also clear up problems concerning
priests’ visas and the management of Catholic property in
Turkey.

There are about 120,000 Catholics in Turkey, in a total
population of 70 million. Few of them are native Turks, most
are Armenians, Chaldeans or Turkish citizens of European
origin.

The question of Catholic rights in Muslim Turkey is
tightly intertwined with the debate over whether the country
should be allowed to join the predominantly Christian
European Union.

The Vatican’s top doctrinal, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger,
said a few months ago that Turkey should not be allowed to
join the EU because its history and culture set it apart
from Europe.

The Pope has frequently – and as yet vainly – argued
that Europe’s Christian roots should be written into the EU’s
new constitution.

The EU is expected to fix a starting date for
negotiations on Turkish membership at a summit in the
Netherlands this December.

Mideast Mirror
October 18, 2004

U.S. Anti-Semitism law

The aim of this law is to exempt the state which presents itself as
the ‘Jewish state’ from any questioning of the crimes it
commits-Al-Rai
There are U.S. Jews who have been persecuted and boycotted by the
mainstream U.S. media because they criticized Israel-Asharq al-Awsat
Anti-Semitism is a pretext used to blackmail the world’s countries
and to extract from them certain political positions-as has been the
case with the alleged holocaust that Israel has been using for
decades to politically and financially blackmail European
countries-al-Rayah
AFP reports that U.S. President George Bush on Saturday signed into
law a bill requiring the State Department to monitor global
anti-Semitism and design strategies to combat it, rating countries
annually on their treatment of Jews. The US State Department had
opposed this new legislation, saying it was unnecessary as the
department already compiles such data in its annual reports on human
rights and religious freedom. Bush signed the Global Anti-Semitism
Review Act of 2004 on a flight to Florida, a key battleground state
in the November 2 presidential elections and one in which the
Republicans hope to make inroads into the traditional Jewish vote for
the Democrats, AFP says. Florida’s Jewish population is the third
largest in the world after Israel and New York, according to AFP .

Arab commentators have reacted strongly to Bush’s announcement that
he had signed into law new legislation on monitoring anti-Semitism
worldwide. The critics concur that the law’s real aim is to prevent
criticism of Israel, in an attempt by the Republicans to curry favour
with traditionally pro-Democratic U.S. Jewish voters, and that it
shows total disregard for Israel’s racist policies against the
Palestinians.

ILLOGICAL: “There is nothing new in this law drafted by the U.S.
Congress and signed by President Bush” requiring the State Department
to specifically monitor anti-Semitism in each country, writes Mahmoud
al-Rimawi in Monday’s Jordanian daily, al-Rai.
“Its real aim is to promote a sympathetic view of the ‘Jewish state’
no matter how this state behaves. The law is not concerned with the
Jews as followers of a religion. These have never had it so good
around the world. If the aim were to protect the followers of a
particular religion, a law would have been adopted banning
discrimination against any religion whatsoever. It is illogical that
there should be positive discrimination in favour of the followers of
one particular religion while excluding others.
The basic aim of this law is therefore to exempt the state which
presents itself as the ‘Jewish state’ from any of the consequences or
the questioning that follows the crimes it commits. Any who question
its actions will risk being accused of discrimination and
anti-Semitism.
There is nothing new in this law. The Republican administration’s
Middle East policy has been based on defending the interests of the
Israeli military and its colonial occupation for four years now. The
new law tries to use religious and ideological ammunition as a cover
for the unholy alliance between this administration and the enemies
of peace who rule in Tel Aviv.
The U.S. election campaign is of course the main reason why this law
has been approved at this particular time. The incumbent president is
trying to win over the votes of U.S. Jews in his battle to remain in
the White House. It is well-known that the majority of U.S. Jews vote
for the Democratic Party because this party has traditionally been
more respectful of minorities and religious and cultural diversity
than have the Republicans. This is why the incumbent president
announced his decision in Florida, with its large ‘Jewish weighting’.
It will be easy for this law to be exploited in such a way as to
portray any criticism of Sharon-style policies as a brand of
anti-Semitism, thereby rendering such criticism taboo.
This irrational move, based on a deliberate confusion between
religion and politics, is just one sign of the path chosen by the
current Republican administration. This is a path that has foiled the
language of dialogue, while the Arab world has been turned into a
theatre for two wars waged by the two most conservative and extremist
powers in the world today.
The response to this law should not be limited to showing how
mistaken it is in setting up discrimination between religions. There
should also be continued firm and courageous criticism of ‘Sharonism’
as a policy opposed to peace and coexistence and openly hostile to
other nations and peoples. A strict distinction must be made between
the advocates of this policy and the followers of the Jewish
religion.
“After all,” concludes al-Rimawi, “Our struggle is with occupation,
expansionism, and racism. It is in no way a struggle against the
followers of any particular religion.”

HYPOCRISY: “The anti-Semitism law signed by President Bush is a
paradigm of political opportunism and bare-faced hypocrisy”, writes
Ahmad al-Rab’i in Monday’s Saudi daily, Asharq al-Awsat. “President
Bush made the announcement that he had signed the law in the city of
Miami, Florida, where a considerable number of Jews live.”
The legislation shows a clear disregard for reason and history.
‘Semitic’ is an expression applying to many nations. The Jews are
Semitic, but so are their Palestinian victims. If there is to be an
anti-Semitic law, then the first to be prosecuted under it should be
Ariel Sharon, who commits crimes against the Semitic Palestinians,
wallows in their killing, and imposes collective punishment on them.
Nor does the law aim at defending the Jews. There are many Jews, both
inside and outside Israel, who oppose the Israeli government’s
policy. And there are U.S. Jews who have been persecuted and
boycotted by the mainstream U.S. media because they criticized
Israel.
The law really aims at protecting Israel, though it has been passed
under the name of combating anti-Semitism. Therefore, we, like many
other political writers and analysts, would be honored to join the
U.S. State Department’s list of ‘anti-Semites’, if ‘Semite’ in
President Bush’s dictionary means ‘Israeli’.
How can a particular state or group be chosen, have conferences
devoted to it, and have the president of the world’s leading country
issue a special law that prevents its criticism? The effect of this
law is to make the Israelis God’s bewildered people, and the rest of
the world’s nations, colors, and races God’s chosen peoples as
persecuted peoples . Israel is the only state in the world that
engages in colonialism, refuses to implement the resolutions that
represent international legitimacy, builds a racist Separation Wall,
carries out collective punishment, and is creative in emulating the
Nazi state that committed so many crimes against the Jews, only for
Israel to play the same role against the Palestinians.
“No sympathy has been expressed in the U.S. legislation for the Arabs
and the Africans. No mention was made of the crimes committed against
the Armenians and the Kurds. All you have to do is wait for the State
Department’s annual report to find out for sure that no one is to
dare criticize Israel,” concludes al-Rab’i.

ELECTORAL RACE: “At a time when the Palestinians have started to
inspect the effects of the terrible destruction, count their victims,
and assess their enormous losses resulting from the Israeli
aggression on the Northern Gaza Strip amidst international silence
and unlimited U.S. support, Israel-and behind it the world’s
Jews-have obtained a new and unprecedented privilege, offered to them
by U.S. President George Bush in the context of his race with this
Democratic rival John Kerry to win the approval of U.S. Jews”, writes
the Qatari daily, al-Rayah. “This is a race whose results will
inevitably be at the expense of the Palestinians and the Arabs”.
With great pride, President Bush announced before an electoral rally
in Florida that he has promulgated a new law to protect the Jews in
all countries of the world. It requires State Department to gather
statistics regarding anti-Semitic acts around the world and to assess
the positions of various states on this issue. It also requires the
establishment of a special bureau within the State Department whose
job it would be to prepare an annual report and to lay down
strategies for fighting anti-Semitic acts around the world. It is
evident that this racist law has been ratified as a result of clear
Jewish pressures. Congress approved it a few days ago on the
suggestion of Democratic Representative Tom Lantos, the congressman
who has been most enthusiastic in supporting Israeli policies.
Moreover, President Bush chose the state of Florida to sign this bill
into law because it contains the third largest Jewish community in
the world after Israel and the New York area.
This law constitutes a dangerous precedent, to be added to the U.S.
foreign policy that has adopted an extremist path in imposing U.S.
will on the world during President Bush’s term in office. Israel
seems to be the only state in the world to be benefiting from this
policy. The new law allows Washington to interfere in the domestic
affairs of countries around the world and to impose its supervision,
demanding they answer its questions concerning the way the Jewish
communities in these countries are treated. As a result, this law
encourages Israel to intervene in the domestic affairs of countries
around the world.
We believe that this law’s targets are primarily the Arab and Islamic
countries that include Jews among their people, or those states whose
policies are disapproved of by Washington and Tel Aviv. Anti-Semitism
is a pretext used by Israel, with U.S. support, to pressure and
blackmail the world’s countries in order to extract from them certain
political positions-as has been the case with the alleged holocaust
that Israel has been using for decades to politically and financially
blackmail European countries.
Discriminating between people on the basis of their colour, religion,
or race is unacceptable. It contradicts the UN’s Convention on Human
Rights. However, it is unfortunate that the U.S. adopts double
standards in this regard. It provides special attention to ensure
safety for Israel and the Jews, based on illusions, while it pays no
attention to the massacres that Israel is committing against the
Palestinians.
“In fact, it provides military, political, and economic support for
these massacres and adds to this by accusing the Palestinians of
terrorism. And herein lies one of the weakest points in U.S. policy,
a weakness that is costing it the world’s trust,” concludes the paper.

Associated Press Worldstream
October 19, 2004 Tuesday 9:37 AM Eastern Time

Putin pledges to step up fight against xenophobia

MOSCOW

President Vladimir Putin pledged Tuesday to make a stronger effort to
stem the spread of xenophobia in Russia, where ethnic-based killings
and attacks on minority groups have become increasingly common.

Addressing a congress of Azerbaijanis living in Russia, Putin said
authorities in Russia have made “mistakes and flaws” in dealing with
the problem. “We need to analyze the situation and respond harshly,”
said Putin, who attended the congress together with Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliev.

“This is particularly important for Russia – a multiethnic and
multi-faith country,” Putin said. “Accord between different ethnic
groups is a corner stone of Russia’s existence.”

Azerbaijanis, the most numerous group of migrants in Russia at about
2 million, have been target often of ethnically motivated attacks.

“Not only the government structures, but the entire society must
respond immediately to any violence or religious intolerance,” he
said, pledging that the government would “consistently and harshly”
combat xenophobia.

Recent polls have shown a rise in xenophobic sentiments in Russia. In
one survey, about 60 percent of respondents support restrictions
against migrants from the former Soviet republics in the Caucasus
Mountains south of Russia – Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia.

Rights activists estimate that there are about 50,000 neo-Nazis in
Russia, with Moscow and St. Petersburg home to their largest groups.
About 20 people have been killed in race-based attacks in Russia
annually in the past few years, and human rights groups say the
government does not do enough to prosecute such crimes.

Associated Press Worldstream
October 19, 2004 Tuesday 9:37 AM Eastern Time

Vatican-Jewish commission condemns vandalism and disrespect for
religious people in Jerusalem

VATICAN CITY

A joint Jewish-Vatican commission on Tuesday condemned acts of
vandalism and disrespect for religious people in Jerusalem, citing
the recent assault on an Armenian archbishop by a Jewish seminary
student.

“Jerusalem has a sacred character for all the children of Abraham,”
said the statement issued during a meeting of the Holy See’s
Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews and the Chief
Rabbinate of Israel.

“We call on all relevant authorities to respect this character and to
prevent actions which offend the sensibilities of religious
communities that reside in Jerusalem and hold her dear,” the
statement said.

A leader of the Armenian church in Jerusalem said Monday the church
would not press charges against an Israeli who spat at clergy during
a Christian procession last week.

In the Oct. 17 incident, a Jewish seminary student spat at Armenian
Archbishop Nourhan Manougian as he carried a cross in a procession
through the Old City. A fist-fight broke out, and the archbishop’s
medallion of office was damaged. The student was arrested but
released shortly afterward.

Tensions are often high in the walled Old City, divided among
Christians, Jews and Muslims. The Old City contains important holy
sites of all three religions, and some are contested among competing
religions and denominations.

The Vatican-Jewish commission, which has been meeting this week in
Grottaferrata, near Rome, urged religious authorities to protest
publicly when disrespectful acts are committed.

“We call on them to educate their communities to behave with respect
and dignity toward people and toward their attachment to their
faith,” the commission said.

Associated Press Worldstream
October 18, 2004 Monday

Christian clergy turn other cheek to spitting Israelis

JERUSALEM

A leader of the Armenian church in Jerusalem said Monday the church
would not press charges against an Israeli who spat at clergy during
a Christian procession last week in the Old City of Jerusalem.

In the Oct. 17 incident, a Jewish seminary student spat at Armenian
Archbishop Nourhan Manougian as he carried a cross in a procession
through the Old City’s cobbled streets. A fistfight broke out, and
the archbishop’s medallion of office was damaged. The student was
arrested but released shortly afterward.

Armenian Bishop Aris Shirvanian said the attacker apologized, and the
church decided to adopt “a Christian outlook, with love.”

Tensions are always high in the walled Old City, divided among
Christians, Jews and Muslims. The Old City contains important holy
sites of all three religions, and some are contested among competing
religions and denominations.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews have also been seen cursing Christian backpackers
on the streets of modern Jerusalem, accusing them of trying to
convert young Jews to Christianity.

Israeli media quoted the student as saying he spat at the Armenian
cleric as a protest against “idol worship.”