"Christian communities across the Middle East are experiencing a particularly difficult time. They are experiencing violence, persecution, and fear. … Let us remember the common heritage and values that unites us in the face of extremism and hatred, which we will never accept," Netanyahu stated in the video uploaded to his official YouTube channel.
He said that while Christians in the Middle East have to put up with hardship, those in Israel enjoy freedom of religion and democracy.
"That's the one exception, because here in Israel religious freedom is a sacred principle," Netanyahu said.
Of the 1 million Christians that used to live in Iraq before the 2003 US invasion of the country, Foreign Policy notes that only around 250,000 remain.
In March, dozens were attacked and killed by forces allegedly linked to al-Qaeda in the Armenian-Christian town of Kessab in Syria.
The situation of Christians in the Middle East has significantly deteriorated since the Islamic State (IS) militant group began asserting its authority in parts of Syria and northern Iraq. Scores of Christians in those areas have had their homes destroyed and family members and relatives killed by IS fighters.
In early December, Jihad Watch reported that IS members decapitated four Christian children in Iraq for refusing to convert to Islam, while recent media reports state that IS has been using Christian churches as torture sites and selling holly artifacts to Western collectors in an attempt to raise funds.
In September, Netanyahu warned that if IS extremism was not stopped, it would spread beyond the Middle East, thus posing a threat to the whole world.
