French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot has denounced the recent attack by an Israeli man on a nun in occupied East Jerusalem.
Barrot on X described the attack as "odious".
"The punishment must be exemplary so that the anti-Christian acts multiplying in the Holy Land come to an end, acts that France, committed to its historic mission of protecting Catholic communities and holy sites, cannot under any circumstances tolerate," he said.
Barrot's remarks came after reports that a 36-year-old Israeli man was arrested after assaulting a French nun in occupied East Jerusalem, according to Israeli police, in an attack they called "racially motivated".
Hundreds of clergy and nuns from around the world serve in churches and religious institutions in occupied East Jerusalem.
Recent years have seen a noticeable rise in attacks by Israelis on Muslim and Christian clergy and on holy sites in Jerusalem.
Church leaders in Jerusalem have repeatedly called on Israeli authorities to act decisively to stop such attacks.
The attack follows a video last month showing an Israeli soldier hitting with a sledgehammer a statue of Jesus.
Violence by Israeli forces and illegal Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank since October 2023 has killed at least 1,155 Palestinians, wounded around 11,750, and led to the arrest of about 22,000 others, according to Palestinian figures.
