Pope Leo XIV has renewed his call for a Gaza ceasefire after three people sheltering in the Catholic church in Gaza City were killed in an Israeli strike.

A telegram said the Pope was “deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury caused by the military attack” on the Holy Family Church.

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which oversees the church, said it was “struck by the Israeli army”. Nine other people were wounded, one of whom is in a critical condition in hospital. The parish priest was lightly injured.

Israel’s foreign ministry said it regretted any harm to a religious site or uninvolved civilians and the Israeli military said the incident was under review.

Many displaced families from Gaza’s small Christian community have been living in the church compound since the war began after their own homes were destroyed.

While he was alive, the late Pope Francis called them on a near-daily basis.

A video and photos shared with the BBC showed the roof of the Holy Family Church was hit, close to the cross, and that windows were broken.

TV footage showed the Argentine parish priest, Father Gabriele Romanelli, walking unsteadily and checking on a man on a stretcher at the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City.

The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, told the Vatican News website that the Holy Family Church was hit by a tank shell.

“What we know for sure is that a tank, the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] says by mistake, but we are not sure about this. They hit the church directly,” he said.

The charity Caritas Jerusalem said the shell hit the church roof, “scattering shrapnel and debris across the yard”.

“At the time, some individuals were outside the main building, including two elderly women who were sitting inside our Caritas psychosocial support tent. Both were severely wounded and were transported by ambulance to Al-Ahli Hospital after a 15-minute delay,” it said.

“Three young people who had been standing at the entrance of the church were also badly injured and were rushed to the hospital using private vehicles.”

Later, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem announced that “three individuals lost their lives as a result of the injuries sustained and nine others were wounded, including one in critical condition and two in serious condition”.

Two of those killed were identified by Caritas Jerusalem, the social arm of the Catholic Church, as Saad Salameh, the 60-year-old parish janitor, and Fumayya Ayyad, an 84-year-old woman.

The Vatican’s secretary of state sent a telegram to the victims saying Pope Leo was deeply saddened by the loss of life and had assured Father Romanelli “and the whole parish community of his spiritual closeness”.

“His holiness renews his call for an immediate ceasefire, and he expresses his profound hope for dialogue, reconciliation and enduring peace in the region,” it added.

Israel’s foreign ministry expressed “deep sorrow over the damage to the Holy Family Church in Gaza City and over any civilian casualty”.

“The IDF is examining this incident, the circumstances of which are still unclear, and the results of the investigation will be published transparently,” a statement said.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni blamed Israel and said: “The attacks against the civilian population that Israel has been carrying out for months are unacceptable.”

“No military action can justify such an attitude,” she added.

The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem also condemned the strike, which it called a “flagrant violation of human dignity and a blatant violation of the sanctity of life and the sanctity of religious sites, which are supposed to provide a safe haven in times of war”.

It estimated that 600 displaced people were sheltering inside at the time, the majority of whom were children as well as 54 people with special needs.

The Holy Family Church falls within part of Gaza City that the Israeli military has previously told locals to leave.

Caritas Jerusalem said Father Romanelli had urged people to remain in the rooms “due to the presence of Israeli tanks near the church compound and continuous strikes in close proximity”.

“If Father Gabriel hadn’t warned us to stay indoors, we could have lost 50 to 60 people today. It would have been a massacre,” one Caritas staff member said.

More than 20 people are reported to have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza on Thursday.

In the north, medical sources said men protecting aid lorries and a couple and their five children were among those killed.

Israel launched its war in Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas-led attacks on 7 October 2023, which killed about 1,200 people and led to 251 others being taken hostage.

Israeli attacks have since killed more than 58,500 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The ministry’s figures are quoted by the UN and others as the most reliable source of statistics available on casualties.

Source: BBC

- Agencies