Three people were confirmed dead and nine were injured, including a parish pastor, on 17 July when what initial reports said was an Israeli tank fire struck the Holy Family Parish, Gaza Strip’s only Catholic parish.
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem confirmed the damage, injuries and fatalities.
In a 17 July telegram, Pope Leo said he was “deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury caused by the military attack on the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza.”
He renewed his call “for an immediate ceasefire, ” expressing “his profound hope for dialogue, reconciliation and enduring peace in the region.”
The patriarchate expressed its “deepest condemnation” of the attack, saying it was 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.”
Parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli sustained a light leg injury but was seen ministering to the wounded before being treated and released from Al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital, where all the injured were taken.
Photos show part of the church roof destroyed and walls blackened. Holy Family Parish serves Gaza’s roughly 600 remaining Christians.
