Church groups demand humanitarian access to Gaza

Gaza’s parish priest called on the Israeli government to allow humanitarian access to the region, joining international demands for a halt to military operations.

Despite an order from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to stop its assault on Rafah in southern Gaza, Israeli forces continued airstrikes, hitting a displacement camp in the city and killing at least 45 people sheltering by a UN warehouse, according to reports.

The United Nations Relief Works Agency said Gaza was “hell on earth” in a statement the next day, describing how “families continue to seek refuge, trying to escape war, but there is no such thing as a safe place in the Gaza Strip”.

On Monday, Martin Griffiths, the UN’s humanitarian chief, warned Israel that “impunity cannot continue”. He also noted that the UN has been unable to pick up humanitarian aid from Israel’s Kerem Shalom at the scale needed “due to impediments and active fighting”.

The Revd Munther Isaac, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, told a conference at Bethlehem Bible College that the international community had “failed the people of Gaza for not being able to stop this war”.

The “Christ at the Checkpoint” conference launched a new initiative entitled IMPACT, to challenge the Church around the world to pray and act in solidarity with Palestinians.

Christian Aid said this week all states should support the ICJ order to halt the Rafah offensive.  It followed South Africa’s petition to the court for emergency measures, to order Israel to halt all operations that threaten the survival of the Palestinian people.

The charity’s programme manager Julie Mehigan said: “In its ruling the ICJ has demonstrated at last that the international rules-based order can work for the protection of Palestinian civilians.” She called for the order to halt military actions in Rafah “to be implemented immediately” and for border crossing to open to humanitarian supplies.

“After almost eight months of terror our partners along with all Palestinian civilians and the hostages in Gaza deserve nothing less,” she said.

Fr Gabriel Romanelli IVE, parish priest of Gaza’s Catholic Church of the Holy Family, called for “the entry of humanitarian aid to heal the thousands of wounded”, following his return to his parish earlier this month.

He said that “the situation in the cities is terrible, without a single structure that has not been damaged”, explaining that the parish was sheltering 500 refugees including 50 vulnerable children and adults cared for by sisters of the Missionaries of Charity. “Additionally, we provide assistance to thousands of people in the neighbourhood, offering water, food and medicine,” he said.

“I have been a missionary in Gaza for almost 19 years – and now, when I was finally able to come back, many of my people are no longer here,” Fr Romanelli told Aid to the Church in Need.

He said 36 Christians have died in Gaza since the conflict began, “20 of whom died due to Israeli army bombings or sniper fire”, while “the others primarily succumbed to the lack of medicine”.

Fr Romanelli said the community continued to pray for an end to the conflict, and extended its prayers extend to all victims. Pope Francis still calls the parish every evening, he added.

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem has announced plans to open a medical clinic and humanitarian aid centre in northern Gaza in collaboration with the Order of Malta.

The Archdiocese of Madrid’s Alfa y Omega reported that paediatric and gynaecological care and ophthalmological services would be available at the clinic, due to begin operating in July.

Fra’ Alessandro de Franciscis, Grand Hospitaller of the Order of Malta, said the clinic would contain a small pharmacy stocking basic medication. It will also diagnose illnesses and offer a vaccination programme.

He said daily food aid was required in Gaza, explaining: “Humanitarian aid is non-existent. Many of the food drop parcels from American planes end up being destroyed as they hit earth or scattered throughout the countryside or else in the hands of bootleggers who re-sell them on the black market at exorbitant prices.”

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