The priest of the Holy Family parish in Gaza City, Fr. Gabriel Romanelli says the situation for some 600 Christians housed in the Gaza Strip’s only Catholic church is worsening as Israeli forces intensify their raids ahead of their planned ground invasion of Rafah.
By Lisa Zengarini
As Israel prepares to launch its ground invasion of Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city, despite international calls, Israeli armed forces have intensified their operations in Gaza City this week and ordered civilians to immediately evacuate the Turkman and Zaitun neighborhoods.
The news was confirmed at Mister agency by Sister Nabila Saleh who took refuge in the Sainte-Famille parish, located in the heart of the Zaitun district, with some 600 displaced Christians.
Raids in Turkman and Zaitun
The Sisters of the Rosary of Jerusalem nun said Israel had been carrying out raids in the area since Monday and that airstrikes had destroyed the “local Sisters of the Rosary school” that she headed. “We are under bombs and Israel is calling on civilians to evacuate the area,” she said.
This is not the first time that the Israeli army has ordered the population of Gaza City to leave the area and each time the displaced Christians living in the parish compound have decided to stay because it is impossible to move the elderly, sick and disabled people accommodated. there and assisted by the nuns of Mother Teresa without compromising their safety.
“Enough is enough”
This time too, says Sister Nabila, they do not want to move despite the risk of being caught in the crossfire. “What hurts the most is that no one is doing anything to stop this war, to tell both parties that “enough is enough,” lamented the nun. “The international community has no courage while civilians here are dying from bombs, hunger and poverty. What else do they want from these poor people? she asked.
Stations of the Cross living in Gaza
For his part, Father Gabriel Romanelli, parish priest of the Holy Family, who has not been able to return to Gaza City since October 7, 2023, but is in permanent contact with his vicar, Father Youssef Asaad, describes the situation of Christians . and the civilian population living in the enclave as a “station of the cross”.
“The situation is getting worse by the hour as the number of deaths increases,” he explained.
Since the start of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the toll of Palestinians killed by Israeli attacks on Gaza now exceeds 29,000, with more than 69,000 injured, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health.
Living conditions in the Church of the Holy Family
In this context, even the living conditions of the Sainte-Famille parish are becoming more and more difficult. Father Romanelli explained that the kitchen is now only operational three days a week and the faithful are desperately trying to get the food they need.
After more than four months of war, the approximately 600 displaced Christians sheltering in the compound, including Orthodox Christians from the nearby Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyry, hit by an Israeli airstrike in October, are ” tired, sad and broken-hearted.”
“They cannot see a future,” said the Argentine priest. Despite this, he adds, “they do everything possible for those who have less than them, for the many families who live near the parish”.
“Pray for us”
Last Friday, Father Romanelli managed to get in touch with his parish to celebrate the first Lent Stations of the Cross: “In each station we prayed for the victims of this war, for peace, for those who suffer, for those who lost everything and everyone,” he explained.
“In this time of Lent – added Sister Nabila – we share our Way of the Cross with Jesus, the first to share human suffering. We entrust ourselves to the One who holds history in His hands and we ask for the gift of peace. Pray with us, for us and for Gaza,” concluded the nun.
