Christian Patriarch Says IDF Struck Gaza’s Only Catholic Church In Raid

The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem said the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) struck Gaza’s sole Catholic Church in a raid on Thursday morning, according to Vatican News.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who serves as the Latin Patriarch in Jerusalem and main Catholic ecclesiastical authority over the Gaza parish, told Vatican News that an IDF tank struck the Holy Family Catholic Church, seriously injuring four people, with two succumbing to their injuries. The parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, was reportedly among the injured.

“What we know for sure is that a tank, the IDF says by mistake, but we are not sure about this, they hit the Church directly, the Church of the Holy Family, the Latin Church”, Pizzaballa told Vatican News. “There are four people seriously wounded, among these four, two are in very dramatic conditions and their lives are in serious danger.”

The IDF did not respond to the 🏢Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

Holy Family Catholic Church hosts around 500 displaced Christians within its walls in the Gaza Strip, according to Vatican News. Around 1,300 Christians are known to live in Gaza, according to a 2022 State Department report.

Pope Leo XIV condemned the strikes in a statement Thursday, saying that he was “deeply saddened” to learn of the attack while also renewing his calls for a ceasefire.