An Orthodox church in Nazareth has been attacked and vandalised by a group calling themselves the "Soldiers of God".
The attack was carried out on the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation in the Israeli town on Sunday evening whilst the church was closed.
The attackers forcibly removed the church's outer gate and rang the church bell without permission.
The incident prompted the Orthodox Community Council to issue a statement on Facebook declaring they "will not allow the desecration of a holy place" and confirming they had filed a complaint with police.
The attackers forcibly removed the outer gate from the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation and rang the church bell without permission
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The council stated they would be following up on the matter.
The church, also known as the Church of Saint Gabriel, was targeted by the group who claimed to be protesting.
According to the church's statement, the "Soldiers of God" claimed they were protesting an Isis terror attack at Mar Elias Church in Damascus, which killed at least 20 people.
Video footage circulating on social media shows a Greek Orthodox priest attempting to manage the small crowd.
The same footage appears to show protesters from the "Soldiers of God" hitting others in the crowd on the head with wooden crosses.
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Video footage circulating on social media shows a Greek Orthodox priest attempting to manage the small crowd
The protesters were seen waving Israeli flags and Israeli-Christian religious flags during the incident.
Senior church leaders who arrived at the scene confronted the protesters and contacted police.
The National Democratic Assembly in Nazareth has strongly condemned the actions of the "Soldiers of God" group.
In a statement reported by an Israeli newspaper, the Assembly characterised the incident as an attack not just on the church but on Nazareth and its residents.
The statement read: "The Assembly considered the attack on the church as an attack on Nazareth and its people, an unsuccessful attempt to desecrate the city's national position and its people, and an attempt to sow discord and promote foreign and strange agendas to our community."
The Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation holds profound historical and religious significance in Nazareth.
According to Greek Orthodox tradition based on the apocryphal Protoevangelium of James, the church is built over a spring where the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary to announce she would conceive Jesus.
The spring served as Nazareth's only natural water source and was used by Mary and her family.
The current structure dates from 1750, after the local Greek Orthodox community received permission to rebuild following the church's destruction by Mamluk Sultan Baybars in the 13th century.
Nazareth remains a major Christian pilgrimage centre with a diverse population of predominantly Arab citizens of Israel, comprising approximately 69 per cent Muslims and 31 per cent Christians.
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