The government expressed its “solidarity with the Palestinian people and the Catholic Church” following Israel’s attack on the Church of the Holy Family in Gaza on Thursday.
“The government condemns the Israeli attack on the Church of the Holy Family in Gaza. It once again expresses its solidarity with the Palestinian people and also with the Catholic Church,” read a post shared on X, formerly Twitter, by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
It added: “A ceasefire and the reinforcement of humanitarian aid are urgent.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conceded today that he “deeply regrets” the attack on a Catholic church in Gaza, describing the deaths as “a tragedy.”
The Israeli army had already admitted and lamented “the damage caused” to the Church of the Holy Family in Gaza, the only Catholic parish, and the victims.
O Governo condena o ataque israelita contra a Igreja da Sagrada Família em Gaza. Expressa, mais uma vez, a sua solidariedade com o povo palestiniano e ainda com a Igreja Católica. O cessar fogo e o reforço da ajuda humanitária são urgentes.
— Negócios Estrangeiros PT (@nestrangeiro_pt) July 17, 2025
“An initial investigation (…) suggests that fragments of a projectile fired during an operation in the area mistakenly hit the church. The cause of the incident is being investigated,” Israeli forces highlighted in a statement, emphasizing that their attacks aim “exclusively at military targets and make every possible effort to mitigate harm to civilians and religious structures.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conceded today that he “deeply regrets” the attack on a Catholic church in Gaza, describing the deaths as “a tragedy.”
Lusa | 20:29 – 17/07/2025
The attack resulted in four deaths, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health via the Spanish agency EFE, although the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem (the highest Catholic representation in the Holy Land) reduced the number to two.
Among the injured is the parish priest, Argentine Gabriel Romanelli, whom Pope Francis called every day since the beginning of the Israeli invasion in the enclave until shortly before his death on April 21, to inquire about the situation of hundreds of displaced people sheltering in this simple stone church.
From the Vatican, Leo XIV received “with deep sadness the news of the loss of human lives and the injuries caused by the military attack on the Catholic Church of the Holy Family in Gaza,” and assured Father Gabriele Romanelli and the entire parish community of “spiritual closeness,” according to a telegram signed on behalf of the pope.
At least two people died and several were injured in an Israeli attack on the parish of the Holy Family, the only Catholic church in the Gaza Strip, media reported today.
Lusa | 11:04 – 17/07/2025
The ongoing war in Gaza was triggered by attacks led by Hamas on October 7, 2023, in southern Israel, which resulted in about 1,200 deaths and more than two hundred hostages.
Israel’s retaliation has already caused over 58,000 deaths, the destruction of nearly all of Gaza’s infrastructure, and the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.
