Israeli Bombing of Gaza’s Catholic Church Kills Two Civilians, Injures Parish Priest
Israeli forces bombed Gaza’s sole Catholic church, killing two women and wounding several others, including the parish priest.
A direct strike on the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza City on Thursday morning killed two people and left several civilians injured, including the Parish Priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, according to a statement released by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.
The attack occurred as intense Israeli shelling continued to pound the al-Zaytun neighborhood, a historic residential area of Gaza City.
For weeks, the 541 Palestinian Christians sheltering inside the church complex had endured constant bombardment, with the walls of the church reportedly trembling from nearby explosions.
According to the Italian newspaper L’Avvenire, the incident took place at approximately 10:10 AM, when an explosive fired from an Israeli tank hit the church’s roof near the cross, causing significant structural damage.
Italian 🇮🇹 Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni just tweeted “Israeli 🇮🇱 raids on Gaza 🇵🇸 also hit the Holy Family Church. The attacks against the civilian population that Israel has been carrying out for months are unacceptable. No military action can justify such behavior.”… https://t.co/1bNSzS8v7n pic.twitter.com/9fLEVOgoTt
— Saad Abedine (@SaadAbedine) July 17, 2025
Debris reportedly fell into the inner courtyard, striking several civilians, including two elderly women who were seated inside a tent erected by Caritas Jerusalem for psychological support sessions. These sessions had been suspended in recent days due to escalating violence.
Father Romanelli, an Argentine national known for regularly briefing Pope Francis on the situation in Gaza, suffered leg injuries but was reported to be in stable condition. He and the other injured individuals were transported to the nearby Al-Ahli Hospital.
Reports from medical sources at Al-Ahli Hospital indicated two fatalities following the raid.
Italy’s ANSA news agency said six people were seriously injured, while parish priest Father Gabriele Romanelli, who used to update the late Pope Francis about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict regularly, suffered light leg injuries.
In a statement, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that “Israeli raids on Gaza have also hit the Holy Family Church”.
“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.
This is not the first time Gaza’s Christian community has come under direct attack during Israel’s military operations.
At least 2 Palestinian Christian women were killed, dozens injured in the Israeli 🇮🇱 drone bombing of the Church of Latin Monastery in the Old Town of Gaza 🇵🇸 City and the injury of the Patron of the Deer Latin sect by targeting the churchhttps://t.co/qRwmfbqDmF https://t.co/h5VsIMXrny pic.twitter.com/eP1dwhvifK
— Saad Abedine (@SaadAbedine) July 17, 2025
In December 2023, Israeli sniper fire targeted civilians at the same Holy Family Church, killing two women, including Nahida Khalil and her daughter, Samar Anton. The attack came shortly after a similar deadly strike on the Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius, where 18 displaced people were killed.
Both incidents triggered international outrage, with Pope Francis expressing deep sorrow at the deliberate targeting of unarmed civilians.
The Vatican has not issued an immediate comment, while the Israeli army claimed it was “looking into the matter.”
(The Palestine Chronicle)