Lt. (Res.) Shadi Khalloul (seen standing on Netanyahu’s left) has been interviewed by and written for Israel Today on several occasions. As a leading representative of the Holy Land’s reborn Aramaic Christian community, Khalloul this week penned for the Gatestone Institute a summary of where Israel’s Christian minority stands today.
Khalloul noted that, like him, many local Christians today understand that serving in the Israeli military is essential.The reason for this is simple: the Middle East is crumbling under the weight of jihad, and is therefore increasingly dangerous for Christians and other minorities. “Israel,” insisted Khalloul, as he has so many times in past, “is the only island of safety that allows [Christians] freedom and democratic rights.”
Even under the Palestinian Authority, Christians do not enjoy anywhere close to the rights and quality of life enjoyed by Israeli Christians, he stressed. Khalloul was adamant that “contrary to propaganda, there is no ‘apartheid’ of any kind in Israel,” pointing out that both Christians and Muslims hold high-level positions in every area of Israeli society. In fact, an Arab Christian is one of the senior justices on Israel’s Supreme Court.
Originally published by Israel Today Magazine.