Gaza opens 1,700-year-old Byzantine church to public
The Byzantine Church dating back to the fifth century in Jabaliya in northern Gaza was renovated and restored into a public museum by the Hamas-run Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, in a bid to revive domestic tourism.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — The Palestinian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in the Gaza Strip inaugurated Jan. 24 the Byzantine Church as a public museum. The ancient church, which is located in the Jabaliya refugee camp in the north of the enclave, dates back to the fifth century.
The ministry worked with several international partners on reconstructing and renovating the church established about 1,700 years ago, in an attempt to revitalize domestic tourism.
Jamal Abu Rida, director general of antiquities at the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in the Gaza Strip, told Al-Monitor that the church ruins were discovered in 1988 by chance when local workers were paving the Salah al-Din highway linking the northern and southern Gaza Strip. The site was buried in sand due to time and climate factors.
Abu Rida explained that the ministry also unearthed the graves of emperors and churchgoers at the site. “They were identified after their bones were examined. We also found coins and pottery pieces,” he said.
