Gaza, Patriarchs of Jerusalem: Relocation, "a death sentence"

2025-08-27 14:24:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The priests and nuns of the Church of the Holy Family in Gaza, hit on July 17 by an Israeli attack that left three dead, slightly wounding the parish priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, and those of the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyry "have decided to stay and continue to care for all those who will be found in the two complexes" in Gaza.

This is what is said in a joint statement published a day ago by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which express their concern following the Israeli government's recent decision to take full control of Gaza City.

Recalling how the two church complexes in Gaza have been shelters for hundreds of civilians, including the elderly, women and children, and people with disabilities, the Patriarchs highlight the suffering that these people are already bearing due to nearly two years of war:

"Many people are emaciated and malnourished" and for them, therefore, "trying to flee south would be tantamount to a death sentence."

"The population of Gaza City," the statement further states, "where hundreds of thousands of civilians live, and where our Christian community is located, will be evacuated and transferred to the south of the Strip."

Evacuation orders have been issued for several neighborhoods of Gaza City and heavy bombardment adds further destruction and deaths to an already dramatic situation before the start of the operation. These actions show, according to the two Patriarchates, that the operation is not just a threat, but a reality already in the implementation phase.

In the uncertainty that is hitting not only our community, but the entire population, the statement emphasizes that there can be no future based on slavery, displacement of Palestinians, or revenge.

"This is not the right path," the statement further states — there is no reason that justifies the deliberate and forced displacement of civilians.

In the joint statement, the Patriarchs request the mediation of other countries to stop the massive military mobilization of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the Gaza Strip, to return the Israeli hostages, kidnapped during the attacks of October 7, 2023, to their families, and to finally bring peace to the region.

"We call on the international community to act to end this senseless and destructive war, and so that missing persons and Israeli hostages can return home."

To live on your own land

The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem quote, finally, the words addressed, during last Saturday's audience, by Pope Leo XIV to a delegation of the Chagos Refugees Group association, engaged in the return of the Chagos Islands to the Republic of Mauritius: "All peoples, even the smallest and weakest, must be respected by the powerful in their identity and rights, in particular the right to live in their lands; and no one can force them into exile."

Finally, a prayer that hearts may turn, that they may walk on the paths of justice and life for Gaza and for the entire Holy Land./ CNA