Archbishop of Westminster condemns ‘appalling strike' on Gaza church
Israel's foreign ministry expressed its 'deep sorrow' over damage to the Holy Family Church 'and over any civilian casualty', adding that the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) are examining the circumstances.
Pope Leo said he was 'deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury caused by the military attack' on the church.
Three people died while nine others were wounded, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem to which the church belonged said.
Parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli – a friend of the late Pope Francis – was among those injured.
Archbishop of Westminster Cardinal Vincent Nichols said the church had been a 'place of sanctuary and spiritual support amidst the horrors of war'.
He said: 'I condemn this appalling strike on the Holy Family Church in Gaza, pray for the dead and injured, and stand in solidarity with Fr Gabriel Romanelli and the people sheltering in the compound – Christians and Muslims alike.
'For 20 months, the Church of the Holy Family has managed to be a place of sanctuary and spiritual support amidst the horrors of war, feeding and protecting hundreds of people.
'I add my voice to Pope Leo's call for a return of hostages, and an immediate ceasefire to end the suffering in Gaza and bring peace to the region. I encourage you, in your homes and parishes, to pray for peace and an end to this war.'
Israel's foreign ministry, in a post on social media platform X, said Israel 'never targets churches or religious sites and regrets any harm to a religious site or to uninvolved civilians'.
Re-stating his call for an immediate ceasefire, Pope Leo said: 'Only dialogue and reconciliation can ensure enduring peace.'
Earlier this week the Archbishop of Jerusalem, in an address to the Church of England's General Synod in York, likened the 'horrifying' food distribution system for Palestinians in Gaza to 'hunger games', in an apparent reference to the dystopian film series of the same name.
Archbishop Hosam Naoum urged Church leaders to support a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine and call for a permanent ceasefire.
At least 20 Palestinians were killed at a food distribution centre run by an Israeli-backed American organisation in the Gaza Strip, mostly from being trampled, it was reported on Wednesday.
A day earlier, the United Nations human rights office said 875 Palestinians have been killed while seeking food since May, including 674 killed while on their way to Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF) food sites and the rest while waiting for aid trucks entering Gaza.
The Anglican bishop, who is chief pastor of 28 parishes across Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, described a situation where 'medical supplies are in short supply; food distribution system is horrifying, with three sites open one hour a day for two million people – it looks for me like hunger games'.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
15 minutes ago
- The Sun
Fury as bankrupt Birmingham council offering asylum seekers huge discounts on swimming, golf, trampolining & Villa games
BANKRUPT Birmingham Council is offering small boat asylum seekers hefty discounts on leisure activities — including swimming, golf and trampolining. The Labour -run authority, which is locked in a bin strike now in its seventh month, is giving migrants up to 25 per cent off through its Passport To Leisure scheme. 2 2 Migrants, many of whom have crossed the Channel by boat before claiming asylum on reaching the UK, can also get a fifth off on the use of council swimming pools. Martial arts classes are subsidised for migrants under the initiative, as are courses on trampolining, golf, gymnastics and football. The price of a trip to a council wellbeing centre for fitness, yoga, squash and badminton sessions is also cheaper. The council even offers £1 tickets to Aston Villa matches for migrant children, as long as they are accompanied by a full paying adult. In a further slap in the face for taxpayers, asylum seekers get ten per cent off at most council leisure sites, meaning cheaper trips to the theatre, museum and city's botanical gardens. Under the scheme, £3 is lopped off tickets to watch shows, such as Disney musical Mary Poppins at the Birmingham Hippodrome. The Passport To Leisure card is available to over-60s, full-time students, carers, disabled people and recipients of certain benefits. Birmingham — England's largest local authority district by population — already has a 'Be Active' scheme for asylum seekers which offers free swimming and gym sessions. The council is £3.9billion in debt and declared itself effectively bankrupt in September 2023 with the issue of a Section 114 notice, limiting it to essential spending only. It is also under fire over its handling of a bin strike which has seen mountains of rubbish pile up on the city's streets. Migrant hotel protesters take to the streets again as demonstrations spread across the country in weekend stand-off Unite union members are in a dispute over pay and proposed changes to some roles. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'This is a bankrupt Labour council, in the middle of a bin strike, racking up billions in debt, hiking council tax by 21 per cent, and their priority is trampolining perks for illegal immigrants. 'It is a slap in the face for hard-pressed taxpayers who are being forced to subsidise freebies for illegal immigrants who claim asylum having crossed the channel.'
BBC News
15 minutes ago
- BBC News
Will there be a bank holiday after England won Euro 2025?
Downing Street has no plans for a bank holiday to mark the Lionesses' Euro 2025 win, the BBC made history on Saturday as they retained their title against World Champions Spain after a dramatic penalty shootout in Basel. A homecoming parade will be held in central London on Tuesday, with an open-top bus tour culminating in a ceremony outside Buckingham the government appears set to confirm there will be no bank holiday to mark the occasion, in line with what happened when England won the same tournament two years ago. Calls for a bank holiday after a major football success are not new, but none were held when England's men's team won the World Cup in 1966, nor when the Lionesses won the Euros in Keir has previously suggested he would be open to giving people a day off work to celebrate an England win, saying at the time that the 2022 victory should be "marked with a proper day of celebration".When the Lionesses reached the World Cup final against Spain in 2023, Sir Keir said "there should be a celebratory bank holiday if the Lionesses bring it home".Downing Street will likely have an eye on the economic cost of announcing an extra bank modelling has previously put the cost at £1.36bn, while accountancy firm PwC estimated the figure would be closer to £ Keir watched on from the stands as England clinched a win on penalties, after the two sides held each other at 1-1 after 90 minutes and extra kicks from Alex Greenwood, Niamh Charles and Chloe Kelly, as well as two huge saves from goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, were enough to see England emerge from the tense match prime minister described the team as "history makers" after the full-time whistle, adding: "You dug deep when it mattered most and you've made the nation proud."
Telegraph
15 minutes ago
- Telegraph
The safe passage of aid must be allowed in Gaza
The dramatic shift in Israel's policy towards Gaza follows weeks of mounting international pressure for more to be done to help the Palestinian people caught in the middle of this catastrophe. The arguments over who was responsible are largely pointless now. The casus belli was the October 7, 2023 invasion by Hamas and the murder of more than 1,000 Israelis, and the kidnapping of scores more. Without that atrocity what we are now seeing would not have happened. Those who march through European capitals every week, blaming Israel for wanting peace and security free from neighbours seeking their destruction, do not have to live in the region. Nor do they consider what any country would do if its citizens were taken hostage and kept as bargaining counters by terrorists. Had they been released and Hamas accepted Israel's right to exist this could have ended months ago. But with a humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza we are past the blame game, as the Israeli government is tacitly conceding by offering 10-hour daily pauses and opening aid corridors in densely populated parts of the Strip. This is 'to enable the safe passage of UN and humanitarian aid organisation convoys delivering and distributing food and medicine to the population'. There have also been air drops of aid in recent days. Critics will say this has come a bit late in the day, although the Israelis have challenged Hamas's accounts of what has happened to past aid convoys, many of which they say have been hijacked. Nonetheless, the new, open-ended, policy is indicative of the massive pressure now being applied to Jerusalem, with countries like France proposing to recognise a Palestinian state. As more pictures emerge from inside Gaza it has become impossible for the Israelis to maintain a narrative that the privation of the people is being exaggerated. Now they have opened up the aid corridors it is imperative that the world sees it is being delivered to women and children and not being intercepted by Hamas. To that end, opening the country to the free and safe movement of foreign media representatives can only be to Israel's advantage. The fact remains, however, that Hamas is still holding at least 50 hostages, of whom 20 are thought still to be alive. Their release is essential to any chance of an agreement to end the conflict. Furthermore, apart from Jordan and the UAE, what are other Arab countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia doing to help the Palestinians?
