The church built in northern Israel, overlooking the Sea of Galilee – to commemorate Christ’s feeding of a multitude out of five loaves and two fish – has been the scene of a suspected arson attack.
Two people suffered minor smoke inhalation; the fire was mainly on the roof. Parts of the church compound were damaged, but the Church of Multiplication, at Tabgha, itself was not significantly affected.
Arson is suspected due to the Hebrew graffiti found at the scene.
The incident comes in the wake of a spate of non-lethal attacks on Christian sites in recent years, including offensive graffiti on a Jerusalem Orthodox church in May 2014.
Right-wing Jewish extremists have carried out similar attacks, but so far few arrests have been made.