Virgin Mary Statue 'Weeps Oil' In Israel

Thousands of people have gathered in a small town in northern Israel to see a statue of the Virgin Mary that a family claims is "weeping oil".

The Christian family from Tarshiha, close to the border with Lebanon, says the statue is "covered with oil" and that the phenomenon is a miracle.

The Khoury family bought the statue last year, but only recently noticed it was "weeping".

"My wife (Amira) came closer to the statue and found it was covered with oil," said Osama Khoury.

"She then wiped the oil, she was scared. She called our neighbour and told her to come and see what she saw.

"The neighbour came and looked at it and found that it was real oil, and then she held my wife's hands and told her not to be afraid, that it was a blessing that had come into your house."

Some parts of the statue appear to be slick with moisture.

The family says around 2,000 people have come to the house to see the statue.

Amira Khoury said the "weeping" statue made her want to pray more.

"I felt a strange feeling that something was pulling me to pray," she said.