GAZA, Oct 20: A blast went off at a building on the premises of the St. Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church campus in Gaza City on Thursday night while dozens of displaced families were sheltering there. Rescuers were pulling people out of the rubble, several of whom were injured, according to people at the site.
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| The area at St. Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church in Gaza City where an explosion occurred. (Ali Jadallah/Anadolu/Getty Images) Published by The Wall Street Journal |
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| Israel bombed a house bordering on the Greek Orthodox church in Gaza, which brought down the assembly hall where around 50 Christians were having refuge. At least a child was murdered and several people injured, all Christians. Many are still under the rubble.Twitter @RahebM |
Video: This morning we were devastated to learn of the death of our colleague Viola, (26), her husband and their baby in an airstrike attack on the St. #Porphyrios Orthodox Church in #Gaza. @IamCaritas and @Caritas_Mona condemn the targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Patriarchate of Jerusalem: Targeting churches and shelters are crimes of war
Published by The Orthodox Times
Oct 20, 2023.
The Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem expressed in an announcement its strongest condemnation of the Israeli airstrike that have struck its church compound in the city of Gaza.
The Patriarchate emphasizes in the announcement that targeting churches and their institutions, along with the shelters they provide to protect innocent citizens, especially children and women who have lost their homes due to Israeli airstrikes on residential areas over the past thirteen days, constitutes a war crime that cannot be ignored.
The Patriarchate added that despite the evident targeting of the facilities and shelters of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem and other churches – including the Episcopal Church of Jerusalem Hospital, other schools, and social institutions – the Patriarchate, along with the other churches, remain committed to fulfilling its religious and moral duty in providing assistance, support, and refuge to those in need, amidst continuous Israeli demands to evacuate these institutions of civilians and the pressures exerted on the churches in this regard.
Finally, the Patriarchate stresses that it will not abandon its religious and humanitarian duty, rooted in its Christian values, to provide all that is necessary in times of war and peace alike.
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-Palestinian and Arab media reported in recent days on some 1,000 refugees who fled from neighborhoods under fire and found shelter in the Greek Orthodox church of St. Porphyrius in Gaza. Archbishop Alexius, the head of the Greek Orthodox Church in Gaza, said the church did its duty and opened its doors to the refugees, mostly women and children.
The reports on the church made headlines all over the Arab world, in light of reports from Iraq on the flight of tens of thousands of Christians from its northern regions because of threats from the Islamic State organization.
News Source Links
https://orthodoxtimes.com/patriarchate-of-jerusalem-targeting-churches-and-shelters-are-crimes-of-war/
https://x.com/JehadAbusalim/status/1715099584492445900
https://www.reuters.com/world/orthodox-church-says-it-was-hit-by-israeli-air-strike-gaza-2023-10-20/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_Saint_Porphyrius
https://www.haaretz.com/2014-07-28/ty-article/.premium/gaza-death-total-reaches-1-062/0000017f-e59b-dea7-adff-f5fb4fc50000
https://x.com/RahebM/status/1715112934114836760
https://x.com/RahebM/status/1715087566544789527
https://twitter.com/MuntherIsaac/status/1715744255560278262
https://www.avgi.gr/diethni/465010_kaloyn-se-leitoyrgia-gia-ta-thymata-toy-israilinoy-bombardismoy
https://bindup.crowdmap.com/reports/view/14014
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