‘It Is Terrorism’: Pope Condemns Israel Assassinating Christian Mother And Daughter in Gaza Church
Chris Menahan
Pope Francis on Sunday condemned Israel for assassinating a Christian mother and daughter with a sniper rifle while they were taking refuge at a Catholic church in Gaza.
At the Angelus, Pope Francis says the attacks by the IDF on the Catholic Parish of Holy Family in Gaza, which resulted in the assassination of two people, and the bombing of a convent of the Sisters of Charity, “it is terrorism” pic.twitter.com/mVEltpk67a
— Catholic Sat (@CatholicSat) December 17, 2023
From The Palestine Chronicle, ” ‘It is Terrorism’ — Pope Francis Condemns Attacks on Civilians in Gaza”:
Pope Francis appealed on Sunday for an end to the war ravaging the Holy Land, praying especially for Christians sheltered in the Holy Family Catholic Parish in Gaza.
At the Angelus prayer, the Pope said he continues to receive troubling news from Gaza, where “unarmed civilians are the targets of bombings and gunfire.”
Pope Francis condemned an attack on the compound of the Catholic parish, “where there are no terrorists, but families, children, people who are sick and have disabilities, and nuns.”
“A mother, Mrs. Nahida Khalil Anton, and her daughter, Samar Kamal Anton, were killed, and others were wounded by the shooters while they were going to the bathroom,” said the Pope.
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… pic.twitter.com/ZtTxgsDrVf
— Hammam Farah (@hammam_therapy) December 17, 2023
My mother texting with my sister, describing a horrific situation at the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza. israeli tanks have surrounded the church, and snipers have taken position around it, shooting at the oldest Christian community in the world. pic.twitter.com/Ais5hG3LEv
— Hammam Farah (@hammam_therapy) December 17, 2023
“Some say, ‘This is terrorism. This is war.’ Yes, it is war. It is terrorism,” he said. “That is why the Scripture affirms that ‘God stops wars… breaks the bow, splinters the spear’ (Psalm 46:10). Let us pray to the Lord for peace.”
Pope Francis also recalled people in various parts of the world who are suffering due to war.
“May the approach of Christmas strengthen the commitment to open paths of peace.”
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said on Saturday that the pair were murdered in cold blood.
“A sniper of the IDF murdered two Christian women inside the Holy Family parish in Gaza, where the majority of Christian families have taken refuge since the start of the war,” the patriarchate said in a statement shared on X.
— Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem (@LPJerusalem) December 16, 2023
“No warning was given, no notification was provided. They were shot in cold blood inside the premises of the parish, where there are no belligerents,” the patriarchate added.
The assassination came just one day after Israeli soldiers killed three Israeli hostages who were shirtless, shouting “help” in Hebrew and waving a white flag.
The IDF soldiers mistook them for unarmed Palestinians and shouted “terrorists!” before unloading their weapons on them.
The Israeli government made killing civilians a central part of their war by invoking an ancient biblical commandment to “destroy Amalek.”
Posted proudly by Bibi-affiliated journalist Yinon Magal:
“I’m coming to occupy Gaza / and beat Hezbollah / I stick by one mitzvah / to wipe off the seed of Amalek / I left home behind me / won’t come back until victory / we know our slogan / there are no “uninvolved civilians” pic.twitter.com/hzN9Bd8M3D— B.M. (@ireallyhateyou) December 7, 2023
