Church leaders in Jerusalem have said that they returned from a trip to Gaza with “broken hearts.”
Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa told journalists, “We have seen men holding out in the sun for hours in the hope of a simple meal.
“This humiliation is hard to bear when you see it with your own eyes. It is morally unacceptable and unjustifiable.”
According to the Greek Orthodox Patriarch, Theophilos III, his Church would “stand in solidarity” with “the whole people of Gaza.”
Both church leaders made a rare visit to the war-torn Gaza Strip after Israeli fire hit the Catholic Holy Family Church in Gaza City last week, killing two women and a man.
Israeli Prime Minister’s office had expressed deep regret for what it described as “a stray ammunition” hitting the Gaza church.
However, local Christians have questioned whether the place of worship was deliberately targeted. About 400 people have been sheltering in the compound, which is in part of Gaza City now under Israeli evacuation orders.
