Strike on Gaza Catholic church kills two, injures several
- Last updated: July 17, 2025 | 18:43
An apparent Israeli strike on Gaza's sole Catholic Church killed two people and injured several, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said on Thursday.
"Two persons were killed as a result of an apparent strike by the Israeli army that hit the Holy Family Compound this morning," the Patriarchate said in a statement.
The Holy Family Church in Gaza spoke in a separate statement of "a number of injured, some in critical condition."
In a telegram for the victims, Pope Leo said he was "deeply saddened" and called for "an immediate ceasefire."
The pope expressed his "profound hope for dialogue, reconciliation and enduring peace in the region," according to the telegram which was signed by the Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
The church compound was sheltering both Christians and Muslims, including a number of children with disabilities, according to Fadel Naem, acting director of Al Ahli Hospital, which received the fatalities and people injured.
The Catholic charity Caritas Jerusalem said the parish's 60-year-old janitor and an 84-year-old woman receiving psychosocial support inside a Caritas tent in the church compound were killed in the attack. Parish priest Romanelli was lightly injured.
The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said they were "aware of reports regarding damage caused to the Holy Family Church in Gaza City and casualties at the scene. The circumstances of the incident are under review."
"The IDF makes every feasible effort to mitigate harm to civilians and civilian structures, including religious sites, and regrets any damage caused to them," the statement added.
The Patriarchate earlier said the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, was among those injured, and his church had sustained damage.
Father Romanelli, an Argentine, used to regularly update the late Pope Francis about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict via calls and messages. Reuters footage from the hospital showed him to be lightly injured, with a bandaged left leg but able to walk.
In a rare move, the Israeli Foreign Ministry posted an apology on social media. "Israel expresses deep sorrow over the damage to the Holy Family Church in Gaza City and over any civilian casualty," the ministry said.
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni blamed Israel for the strike on the religious compound.
"The attacks on the civilian population that Israel has been demonstrating for months are unacceptable. No military action can justify such an attitude," she said.
The church is just a stone's throw from Al-Ahli Hospital, Naem said, noting that the area around both the church and the hospital has been repeatedly struck for over a week.
The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which also has a church in Gaza that previously sustained damage from Israeli strikes, said the Holy Family Church was sheltering 600 displaced people, including many children, and 54 people with disabilities. It said the building suffered significant damage.
Targeting a holy site "is a blatant affront to human dignity and a grave violation of the sanctity of life and the inviolability of religious sites, which are meant to serve as safe havens during times of war," the Church said in a statement.
Separately, another person was killed and 17 injured Thursday in a strike against two schools sheltering displaced people in the Al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Al-Awda Hospital. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strike.
France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Thursday slammed as "unacceptable" a strike on Gaza's only Catholic church that the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said was carried out by Israel and killed two people.
"Unacceptable attack in Gaza against the Church of the Holy Family, historically under the protection of France," he said, alluding to a 16th-centrury accord for France to protect Catholic Christians in the Holy Land.
Agencies