Overview

• From Castel Gandolfo, the pontiff called for an immediate ceasefire and stressed the obligation to protect civilians under international humanitarian law
• An Israeli strike on the Holy Family Catholic Church killed three people, including the church’s janitor, and wounded ten others, among them the parish priest
• The Israel Defense Forces expressed regret, described the church strike as accidental and opened a formal investigation following phone exchanges with the Vatican and White House
• Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa and Patriarch Theophilos III led a delegation into Gaza to pray at the damaged church and deliver aid to displaced worshippers
• President Trump phoned Prime Minister Netanyahu to press for the probe’s thoroughness and to insist on full civilian safeguards