Al-Ghoul: Jesus was the first Palestinian self-sacrificing fighter

Excerpt of a column by Omar Hilmi Al-Ghoul, regular columnist for official PA daily and former advisor to former PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on national affairs

Headline: “A monk in hell”

“Yesterday [July 11, 2023,] in the city of Birzeit, 60 years (the diamond jubilee) were celebrated since the start of the activities of [Catholic priest] Monsignor Manuel [Musallam] in the church, as well as his 85th birthday…

He is a different type of man, prominent in his virtues and courage in defending the people, the homeland, and the resistance. He is the one who creatively integrated religion and resistance, and he enrobed in the spirit of the first self-sacrificing fighter Jesus, who arose[in resurrection]out of the fangs of the Jewish crucifixion (sic., Jesus is said to have been crucified by the Roman empire) and ascended to Heaven, to the Master of the Universe…

Our Father Manuel has immortalized his experience in the struggle against Israeli colonialism through his religious and national preaching, sermons, and books. He refused to separate religion and resistance, and he enrobed in the spirit of late Martyr [former Greek Catholic] Archbishop [of Jerusalem Hilarion] Capucci (i.e., terrorist weapons smuggler).”

[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, July 12, 2023]

Omar Hilmi Al-Ghoul is also a former PLO Central Council member.

Hilarion Capucci – former Greek Catholic Archbishop of Jerusalem who exploited his status as a religious leader to smuggle weapons to Palestinian terrorists. He was arrested in 1974 and sentenced to 12 years in prison. He was released in 1977 due to the Vatican’s intervention. In October 2013, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas awarded him the Star of Jerusalem Medal. Capucci died on Jan. 1, 2017.