Overview

• On July 17, an Israeli strike hit the Holy Family Church in Gaza City, killing three displaced worshippers and injuring parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli, which had sheltered hundreds of civilians since the conflict began.
• Israel’s military and foreign ministry insisted the attack on the church was not intentional and launched a formal investigation into the circumstances of the strike.
• On July 18, Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa and Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III visited the damaged church to pray for victims and distribute aid to hundreds of displaced Palestinians.
• Pope Leo XIV, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the church strike as “inadmissible” and reiterated calls for an immediate ceasefire.
• On July 19, Israeli fire near two humanitarian aid centers in southern Gaza killed 26 people and wounded over 100 others, highlighting the ongoing danger to civilian infrastructure.