Emigration of Christians from Israel and Palestine

Christian emigration is often undertaken in pursuit of better living standards, and primarily driven by economic considerations.^[6][7] The Jerusalem Post stated in 2009 that the "shrinking of the Palestinian Christian community in the Holy Land came as a direct result of its middle-class standards".^[8] A survey carried out in 1993 showed that "the poor economic situation is cited as a cause for emigration by the overwhelming majority of those intending to leave, with the political conditions given as a second reason."^[9] A 2020 survey showed a similar result: "The largest percentage indicate that their desire to emigrate stems from economic reasons".^[10]

In a 2020 study, similar factors were noted with respect to emigration of Christian communities in Gaza.^[11]

Chain migration is a significant factor particularly from areas such as Bethlehem and adjacent towns which produced some of the largest Palestinian Christian communities outside the Middle East. Scholars note that remittances and return visits have mitigated—but not reversed—the long-term population decline of Christian communities in Palestine.^[12][13]

Transnational family networks have shaped emigration among Palestinian Christians, providing knowledge of and access to opportunities abroad. Long-standing migration to the Americas created dense networks and family business structures that provided economic support and reduced the risks associated with relocation. These networks influenced migrants’ destinations and facilitated the establishment of new diaspora hubs. In addition, the emigration of entire family groups weakened ties to local communities, contributing to further pressure for outward migration.^[14]

The Christian share of overall population has also decreased due to low birth rates compared to both Jewish and Muslim communities.^[15][7] In Israel in 2024, Jewish and Muslim women had a fertility rate of 3.10 and 2.68 children respectively, significantly higher that the 1.62 fertility rate amongst Christian women.^[16]

The Vatican and the Catholic Church blamed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for the Christian exodus from the Holy Land and the Middle East in general.^[17]

In a 2006 poll of Christians in Bethlehem by the Palestinian Centre for Research and Cultural Dialogue, 90% reported having Muslim friends, 73% agreed that the Palestinian Authority treats Christian heritage in the city with respect, and 78% attributed the ongoing exodus of Christians from Bethlehem to the Israeli West Bank barrier causing an economic crisis in Bethlehem.^[18] Daniel Rossing, the Israeli Ministry of Religious Affairs' chief liaison to Christians in the 1970s and 1980s, has stated that the situation for them in Gaza became much worse after the election of Hamas. He also stated that the Palestinian Authority, which counts on Christian westerners for financial support, treats the minority fairly.^[8]

The United States State Department's 2006 report on religious freedom criticized both Israel for its restrictions on travel to Christian holy sites and the Palestinian Authority for its failure to stamp out anti-Christian crime. It also reported that the former gives preferential treatment in basic civic services to Jews and the latter does so to Muslims. The report stated that, generally, ordinary Muslim and Christian citizens enjoy good relations in contrast to the "strained" Jewish and Arab relations.^[15] A 2005 BBC report also described Muslim and Christian relations as generally "peaceful", while noting that some Christians complain of harassment and discrimination.^[7] The Arab Human Rights Association, an Arab NGO in Israel, has stated that Israeli authorities have denied Palestinian Christians in Israel access to holy places, prevented repairs needed to preserve historic holy sites, and carried out physical attacks on religious leaders.^[19] Kairos Palestine—an independent coalition Christian organisation, set up to help communicate to the Christian world what is happening in Palestine—sent a letter to The Wall Street Journal to explain that "In the case of Bethlehem, for instance, it is in fact the rampant construction of Israeli settlements, the chokehold imposed by the separation wall and the Israeli government's confiscation of Palestinian land that has driven many Christians to leave."^[20]

Contrary to some claims, the emigration phenomenon is not primarily driven by Muslim-Christian relations.^[21][22][23] The Jerusalem Post stated that Muslim pressure has not played a major role according to Christian residents themselves. Hanna Siniora, a prominent Christian Palestinian human rights activist, has attributed harassment against Christians to "little groups" of "hoodlums" rather than to the Hamas and Fatah governments.^[8] In his last novel, the Palestinian Christian writer Emile Habibi has a character affirm that: "There is no difference between Christian and Muslim: we are all Palestinian in our predicament."^[24]

Blame games over the causes of Christian emigration from Palestine have become a recurring feature in media coverage of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, in efforts to influence opinion of Christian communities in the West.^[25]

In 2006, a draft bill was introduced by Representatives Michael McCaul and Joseph Crowley, drafted by their staffers Ari Stein and Gregg Sheiowitz,^[26] which attributed the decline of the Christian population primarily to alleged failures by the Palestinian Authority.^[27] According to Professor Daphne Tsimhoni of the Israel Institute of Technology “almost all the bill's assertions are either exaggerations, misrepresentations or sheer fabrications.”^[26] Representatives of churches in Palestine submitted a letter to the U.S. House Committee on International Relations stating that the resolution misrepresented the causes of Christian emigration by emphasizing internal religious or political factors while omitting the impact of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, including movement restrictions and economic constraints. Critics noted that the resolution had been drafted without consultation with Palestinian Christian institutions and risked reinforcing politicized narratives about Christian–Muslim relations in the region. The resolution was quietly withdrawn following the criticism.^[28]

In 2012, the CBS News program 60 Minutes aired a report titled “Christians of the Holy Land”, presented by correspondent Bob Simon, examining the decline of Christian communities in Bethlehem, Jerusalem, and surrounding areas.^[29] The segment linked emigration to conditions associated with the broader Israeli–Palestinian conflict, including restrictions on movement and economic pressures. Michael Oren, then Israeli ambassador to the United States, attempted to influence CBS to withdraw it prior to publication, arguing that it placed disproportionate blame on Israel. Simon responded by defending the reporting both on air and in subsequent interviews, stating that the segment reflected the testimony of local Christian residents and clergy and was consistent with available historical and empirical research.^[30]

Christian emigration from Palestine predates the Arab–Israeli conflict, beginning in the late Ottoman period and intensifying during the British Mandate, when drought, economic marginalization, and early transnational family networks facilitated large-scale movement to the Americas. Scholarly studies describe this emigration as structural rather than episodic, rooted in unequal access to land, capital, and political power rather than solely in sectarian relations.^[31]

Thousands of Christian Palestinians "emigrated to Latin America in the 1920s, when Mandatory Palestine was hit by drought and a severe economic depression."^[32] Today, Chile houses the largest Palestinian Christian community in the world outside of the Levant. As many as 350,000 Palestinians reside in Chile, most of whose families came from Christian villages such as Bethlehem and surrounding villages.^[33] Also, El Salvador, Honduras, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela, and other Latin American countries have significant Palestinian Christian communities, some of whom immigrated almost a century ago during the time of Ottoman Palestine.^[34]

Prior to the Nakba, 135,550 Christians lived in Mandatory Palestine, of which 110,200 (81%) lived in areas that are today Israel and East Jerusalem, and 25,350 (19%) in what is now the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.^[1] Palestinian Christians were disproportionately affected by displacement, with an estimated 35–40% becoming refugees, accelerating the demographic contraction of historic Christian centers such as Jaffa, West Jerusalem, and Galilee towns.^[35] Subsequent Israeli policies restricting return, residency rights, family reunification, land use, and access to employment have been identified as long-term drivers of Christian out-migration from East Jerusalem and the West Bank.^[36][35]

From 1948 to the early 1950s, Ben-Gurion's Transfer Committee authorized projects for the transference of the Christian communities of the Galilee to Argentina, but the proposal failed in the face of Christian opposition.^[37][38]

In 2024, according to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, there were 180,300 Christians in Israel (including East Jerusalem), of which c.141,900 (79%) are Arab Christians (Palestinian Christians) living in the Northern District (68%, c.96,500), Haifa District (15%, c.21,300) and other areas (17%), with 44% in just three locations: Nazareth and Nof HaGalil (30,300 combined),^[39] Haifa (18,700) and Jerusalem (13,100). The c.38,400 non-Arab Christians live mainly in the Tel Aviv District and Central District (41% combined), and in the Northern and Haifa Districts (35% combined).^[2]

In 2017, the most recent census by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, there were 46,850 Christians in the Palestinian territories, the vast majority living in the West Bank, which accounted for 45,712 Christians (c.98%), while the Gaza Strip was home to just 1,138 Christians (c.2%). Christian communities in the West Bank were highly concentrated, with nearly three-quarters living in three governorates: the Bethlehem Governorate (23,165; 51%), the Ramallah & Al-Bireh Governorate (10,255; 22%), and the Jerusalem Governorate (8,558; 19%). Smaller Christian populations were present in the Jenin Governorate (2,699), the Nablus Governorate (601), the Jericho & Al-Aghwar Governorate (285), and other governorates, each accounting for less than 2% of the total. In the Gaza Strip, Christians were concentrated primarily in the Gaza Governorate (1,082; 95%), with very small communities in the North Gaza, Khan Yunis, Rafah, and Deir Al-Balah Governorates.^[3]

Most of the Gaza Strip's Christian population lived in Gaza City, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.^[40] As of October 2024, most of Gaza's Christians had decided to remain in the churches' compounds in northern Gaza.^[41] In November 2024, Israel announced that no Palestinians would be allowed to "return" to North Gaza.^[42][43][44]

The tables below show the Christian population of Mandatory Palestine by location, compared to the modern day Christian population for the same location where available. The tables are separated into the two tables showing each location in modern Israel and East Jerusalem in which more than 250 Christians were living in 1945, and the remaining locations with less than 250 Christians each, and two equivalent tables for the Christian population of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

• Demographic history of Palestine (region)