A clergyman is pictured in a file photo carrying the monstrance during a Eucharistic procession outside Holy Family Catholic Church in the Gaza Strip. Following a series of attacks on Christians in Gaza by Israeli forces Dec. 16, 2023, including the killing of a mother and daughter at the parish, the Israeli Defense Forces denied claims that it targeted civilians in the Catholic parish. (OSV News photo/Paul Jeffrey)JERUSALEM — Following a series of attacks on Christians in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces Dec. 16, including the killing of a mother and daughter at a Catholic church, the Israeli Defense Forces said that it "takes claims regarding harm to sensitive sites with the utmost seriousness." However, the statement did not make any mention of the shooting deaths of the two women in the Holy Family Parish premises.
In a heartfelt appeal during an Angelus prayer Dec. 17, Pope Francis called for an end to the "terrorism" of war, condemning the previous day's attack in which -- the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said -- an Israeli army sniper shot and killed Nahida Khalil Anton, and her daughter, Samar Kamal Anton, as they walked to a convent at the Holy Family Parish compound in Gaza. The convent of the Missionaries of Charity also was targeted.
The Israeli Defense Forces said in a Dec. 17 statement, "An initial review suggests that IDF troops, who were operating against Hamas terrorists in the area, operated against a threat that they identified in the area of the church." The Israeli military said it "is conducting a thorough review" of what it called "the incident."
The statement also said the Israeli military received a letter from the Latin Patriarchate Dec. 16 describing a "tragic incident" following explosions heard near the church -- apparently in reference to the rockets mentioned in the Latin Patriarchate's statement.
"During the dialogue between the IDF and representatives of the community, no reports of a hit on the church, nor civilians being injured or killed, were raised. A review of the IDF's operational findings support this," the Israeli military's statement said.
While avoiding language that directly criticized the Israeli military, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said in its Dec. 16 statement the mother and daughter were "murdered."
"One was killed as she tried to carry the other to safety," the patriarchate said, adding that seven more people were shot and wounded while trying to protect others in the church compound.
"No warning was given, no notification was provided," the statement said. "They were shot in cold blood inside the premises of the parish, where there are no belligerents."
The Latin Patriarchate also said that the same day, an Israeli army tank launched a rocket that targeted a Missionaries of Charity convent that is home to "54 disabled persons and is part of the church compound, which was signaled as a place of worship since the beginning of the war."
After destroying its generator and fuel resources, the patriarchate said, the tank fired two more rockets that "rendered the home uninhabitable," leaving the displaced persons without a home and "without access to the respirators that some of them need to survive."
Expressing its condolences to the victims and their families, the Latin Patriarchate called the attack a "senseless tragedy."
Pope Francis appealed for an end to a war that is ravaging the Holy Land, praying especially for the Catholic parish community in Gaza, where "unarmed civilians are the targets of bombings and gunfire."
The pontiff emphasized the attack occurred on the premises "where there are no terrorists, but families, children, people who are sick and have disabilities, and nuns."
The Israeli military said, in return, that its "activity is focused against the terrorist organization Hamas and is not directed against civilians, regardless of their religious affiliation."
"The IDF takes many measures to reduce harm to civilians in the Gaza Strip. Despite the complex fighting against a terrorist organization that does everything in its power to endanger citizens and uses them and various religious institutions as human shields for its terrorist activities," the statement added.
— Judith Sudilovsky, OSV News. Junno Arocho Esteves contributed.
Pope condemns targeting of unarmed civilians in Gaza
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Pope Francis waves to the crowd gathered in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican to pray the Angelus with him Dec. 17, 2023. (CNS photo/Pablo Esparza)VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis condemned the Israeli military's killing of two Christian women sheltering at a Catholic parish in Gaza and an attack on a convent, noting that in the current fighting "unarmed civilians are targets for bombs and gunfire."After praying the Angelus with some 22,000 people in St. Peter's Square Dec. 17, the pope decried the Dec. 16 sniper attack on the compound of the Holy Family Catholic Parish in Gaza where, he said, "there are no terrorists, but families, children, people who are sick and have disabilities, sisters."
He also named the mother and daughter -- Nahida Khalil Anton and Samar Kamal Anton -- who were killed in the parish compound.
"One was killed as she tried to carry the other to safety. Seven more people were shot and wounded as they tried to protect others inside the church compound," said a statement by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which also specified that they were shot by a sniper of the Israeli military.
"No warning was given, no notification was provided. They were shot in cold blood inside the premises of the Parish, where there are no belligerents," it said.
The statement added that Israeli forces fired three rockets on a convent in the church compound belonging to the Missionaries of Charity, where 54 disabled persons lived, rendering the home uninhabitable.
"Some are saying, 'this is terrorism and war,'" Pope Francis said after reciting the Angelus prayer Dec. 17. "Yes, it is war; it is terrorism."
"Let us pray to the Lord for peace," he said, asking people to "not forget out brothers and sisters who are suffering because of war in Ukraine, in Palestine and Israel, and in other conflict zones."
"As Christmas approaches, may the dedication to open paths of peace be strengthened," he said.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, met Dec. 16 with Italy's delegate to the Arab League and the ambassadors of Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq and Egypt to the Holy See. The cardinal reiterated Pope Francis' repeated calls for a cease-fire between Israel and Palestine and the need for humanitarian access into Gaza. He also again repeated the Vatican's call for a two-state solution in the Holy Land and the creation of an internationally enforced statute for the city of Jerusalem, the Vatican said.
Before praying the Angelus, the pope reflected on the day's Gospel reading from St. John, which says that St. John the Baptist "came to testify the light" before the coming of Jesus.
Through his example, St. John the Baptist teaches Christians two things, Pope Francis said: "First, that we cannot save ourselves alone, only in God do we find the light of life. And second, that each of us, through service, consistency, humility, witness of life -- and always by God's grace -- can be a lamp that shines and helps others find the war on which to meet Jesus."
He encouraged Christians to ask themselves, "How can I, in the places I live, not in the distant future but now, this Christmas, testify to light, testify to Christ?"
— Justin McLellan, CNS
