CNA Staff, Jul 22, 2020 / 16:50 pm
Israeli forces on July 20 carried out an operation to retrieve a Byzantine-era baptismal font that they said was stolen from an archeological site 20 years ago. In response, a Palestinian authority called the act of removing the font from a Palestinian town an act of theft and a "war crime."
The font, believed to have been used in a 6th-century church at the archeological site near Bethlehem where it was uncovered, weighs some eight tons and is believed to be one of only three of its kind.
Video released by the PLO Department of Public Diplomacy & Policy shows the font being carted out of Bethlehem on a flatbed truck under cover of darkness.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">WATCH: Israeli occupation forces stole a historical baptismal font dating back to the 6th century from the city of Bethlehem last night. <a href="https://t.co/zCRjk0V79f">pic.twitter.com/zCRjk0V79f</a></p>— PLO Department of Public Diplomacy & Policy (@PalestinePDP) <a href="https://twitter.com/PalestinePDP/status/1285150998663696385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>