TAYBEH, West Bank: Top church leaders in the Holy Land have spoken out against Israeli settler violence during a rare solidarity visit to Taybeh, the only entirely Christian Palestinian village remaining in the occupied West Bank.

Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III and Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa accused Israeli authorities of 'facilitating and enabling' the presence of settlers who have intensified attacks on the community in recent weeks.

The church leaders condemned an incident last week where settlers set fires near Taybeh's church, stating that Israeli authorities failed to respond to emergency calls for help from the Palestinian community.

In a joint statement, they demanded an investigation into the incident and called for the settlers to be held accountable by the Israeli authorities, who are alleged to 'facilitate and enable' their presence around Taybeh.

Furthermore, Pizzaballa, the top Catholic cleric in Jerusalem, expressed concerns that the West Bank is becoming a lawless area.

He emphasized that the only law upheld there is the power of those with force, rather than legal authority, urging for the return of the rule of law to ensure the enforcement of rights.

The church leaders' statement comes amid reports of an increase in settler violence against Palestinian communities.

On Sunday, hundreds of settlers descended on the village of Al-Mazraa a-Sharqiya, south of Taybeh, for the funeral of two young men killed during a settler attack on Friday.

The Christian community in Israel and the Palestinian territories has dwindled significantly over the decades, with lower birth rates and emigration contributing to this decline.

Christians now represent only a small fraction of the overall population.