Threat and strikes on the Holy Family Church and Latin Monastery(2023-2024)

The Holy Family Church compound had been providing refuge to approximately 600 displaced Palestinians, including 54 people with special needs, since the war began.

Testimony of Hammam Farah @HumHum83 On December 17, 2023

This morning Israeli snipers shot and killed my two family friends in an attack on the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza. Nahida (Um Emad Anton) and Samar, mother and daughter, were walking to the Sisters’ Convent to use the only bathroom. One was killed as she tried to carry the other to safety. Their bodies remain strewn across the church courtyard. The water tanks and solar panels were also struck. We don’t know if they have enough water to survive. The Christian community in Gaza is on the verge of extinction. There are about 800 of us left, some sheltering in the Catholic church, some in the Orthodox church, and a few still in their homes in Gaza City.

This morning Israeli snipers shot and killed my two family friends in an attack on the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza.Nahida (Um Emad Anton) and Samar, mother and daughter, were walking to the Sisters’ Convent to use the only bathroom. One was killed as she tried to carry the other to safety. Their bodies remain strewn across the church courtyard. The water tanks and solar panels were also struck. We don’t know if they have enough water to survive.

The Christian community in Gaza is on the verge of extinction.There are about 800 of us left, some sheltering in the Catholic church, some in the Orthodox church, and a few still in their homes in Gaza City. On October 2023, there were approximately 530 Christians inside the Holy Family, 60 per cent are women and children.

*My family has been sheltered there since St. Porphyrius Orthodox Church was bombed and my cousin was murdered. This is a targeted death campaign during the Christmas season on the world’s oldest Christian community. Earlier this morning, an Israeli tank fired on the Convent of the Sisters of Mother Theresa. The convent housed ~54 people with disabilities. The generator was destroyed, taking out electricity. Then two more shells were fired completely destroying the convent. Many of these people are now without the respirators they need to survive. The Red Cross has submitted a request to the Pope for urgent intervention.

On July 8, 2024

According to Caritas "The Holy Family School and its surrounding area in Gaza were devastated yesterday by [Israeli] raid, resulting in the tragic loss of hundreds of innocent lives. This school served as a sanctuary for displaced families, offering them a place of safety amidst the chaos"

31.524136, 34.452550 https://x.com/ChrisOsieck/status/1810563332648165883

On December 14, 2024

Around midday, an Israeli airstrike targeted the Holy Family School in Al-Rimal neighborhood in Gaza City. The school was sheltering displaced persons and several were injured in the attack.*

(Sources: 1 2)