Overview
- The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which announced Monday the cancellation of the Palm Sunday procession from the Mount of Olives, also deferred the Holy Thursday Chrism Mass to a later date.
- Israeli officials have closed all holy sites in the Old City for safety, and Home Front Command caps gatherings at 50 people, or 100 in lower‑risk areas, only where quick access to a bomb shelter is available.
- News outlets report Iranian missile fragments landing near the Old City in recent days, with one strike damaging areas tied to Christians near the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
- Ordinary public celebrations are suspended, yet churches remain open for limited prayer and Franciscan friars say the Holy Sepulchre’s daily rites continue under the long‑standing Status Quo rules.
- Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa calls for a worldwide rosary on March 28 and notes Vatican approval to delay the Chrism Mass, which postpones the blessing of oils used for baptisms, confirmations, and anointing of the sick.