365bet�����������籭

ATHENS 

Eight bishops of the Church of Denmark on Wednesday called on the Danish government to intensify pressure on Israel to halt its military campaign in Gaza and allow the delivery of humanitarian aid.

“We therefore call on the Danish government to put pressure on the Israeli government to comply with the many international demands to immediately cease hostilities in Gaza and to cooperate in getting more emergency aid into Gaza,” the bishops said in a joint statement.

They described the situation in Gaza as having “long since exceeded all reasonable proportions” and expressed alarm at Israel’s actions in both Gaza and the West Bank.

The bishops also voiced support for protests against the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and issued a strong rejection of religious justifications for violence.

“We reject the so-called Christian Zionism, which is used as religious support for illegal settlements and the expulsion of non-Jews from the Palestinian territories,” they said. “We strongly oppose any misuse of religion to justify attacks on people—including war crimes.”

The Church of Denmark, a national institution adhering to Evangelical-Lutheran theology, has 10 bishops across the Danish mainland, along with one bishop each for the Faroe Islands and Greenland.

The joint statement was signed by bishops from the dioceses of Copenhagen, Haderslev, Viborg, Helsingor, Fyens, Lolland-Falster, Aarhus and Aalborg.

The Israeli military has continued its offensive in Gaza despite widespread international calls for a ceasefire. Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed nearly 55,400 Palestinians — most of them women and children.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice over its military operations in the enclave.