JERUSALEM, Israel: In a move being praised by many Christian leaders, the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently announced the appointment of a new position of envoy to the Christian world — with the goal of better and smoother relations with the Christian world.In an exclusive interview in Jerusalem, Ambassador George Deek, told Fox News Digital the importance the Netanyahu government has put on his position."We see the ethnic cleansing of the region from its Christians, who have been diminished from 20% of the population of the Middle East to less than 2% of the population today," Deek said."All those places that used to have thriving Christian communities today have been reduced to nothing."CHRISTIAN LEADERS HOLD EMERGENCY SUMMIT IN JERUSALEM TO CONFRONT GLOBAL RISE IN ANTISEMITISMAmbassador George Deek is Israel's first envoy to the christian world.
(Yoav Dudkevich/TPS-IL)Israel counts 300 churches, double the number in 1948, while its Christian population has grown from 34,000 in 1948 to more than 180,000 today.Deek said of his role."My hope is to also be able to build strong bridges between the State of Israel and Christian leaders… by telling a fuller story of the State of Israel, which I think is missed in most of the narratives we hear today in the world," he said.According to Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics, as of December 2025, Israel’s Christian population stood at approximately 184,200, representing 1.9% of the country’s total population.
The community grew by 0.7% over the previous year.Deek, who served for six years as Israel’s ambassador to Azerbaijan before assuming his current role, said most people know Israel only through its Jewish identity and are unaware of the complexity and diversity of Israeli society.Deek said the decision announced by the Foreign Ministry in April to appoint him to the role stems from three factors: first, the special connection between Christians and the land of Israel as the birthplac...