Latest news with #DawoudAbuAlkas
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
3 days ago
- Politics
- First Post
Israeli strike on Gaza's only Catholic church kills 2, injures priest
In the latest round of attacks in the Gaza Strip, Israel has struck the Holy Family Church in Gaza City, which is the only Catholic church in Gaza. At least two persons were killed in the attack the priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, also suffered injuries. read more People carry the body of Palestinian Christian Saad Salama, who was killed in an Israeli strike on the Church of the Holy Family, according to medics, at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital, in Gaza City July 17, 2025. (Photo: Reuters/Dawoud Abu Alkas) In the latest round of attacks in the Gaza Strip, an Israeli strike on Thursday struck the Holy Family Church in Gaza City and killed two persons. In a statement carried by AFP, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which administers the Holy Family Church, said, 'With deep sorrow the Latin Patriarchate can now confirm that two persons were killed as a result of an apparent strike by the Israeli army that hit the Holy Family Compound this morning. We pray for the rest of their souls and for the end of this barbaric war. Nothing can justify the targeting of innocent civilians.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The Holy Family Church is the only Catholic church in Gaza. The church's priest, Father Gabriel Romanelli, was also injured in the attack. Pope Leo responded to the attack with a reiteration of his call for a ceasefire. A statement from the Vatican said that the Pope was 'deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury caused by the military attack on the Holy Family Church in Gaza' and 'renews his call for an immediate ceasefire'. Parish priest of the Church of the Holy Family, father Gabriele Romanelli, receives medical attention, after he suffered light leg injuries following an Israeli strike on the church, according to medics, at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City, in this still image taken from a video July 17, 2025. (Photo: Reuters/Dawoud Abu Alkas) This is not the first time that Israel has struck a church in Gaza. Since October 2023, when Israel began the military campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas' attack on Oct. 7, multiple attacks have been reported on churches in Gaza, such as the Church of Saint Porphyrius, which is a historic church in Gaza that dates to the 4th century CE. In one such attack, at least 18 Palestinians were killed in the church compound. Israeli attack destroyed large parts of church complex The Israeli attack 'destroyed large parts of the complex' of the Holy Family Church, according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. 'Targeting a holy site currently sheltering approximately 600 displaced persons, the majority of whom are children and 54 with special needs, is a flagrant violation of human dignity and a blatant violation of the sanctity of life and the sanctity of religious sites, which are supposed to provide a safe haven in times of war,' the statement further read. Beside the Pope, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reacted strongly to the strike and said Israeli attacks on civilians are unacceptable. 'The Israeli raids on Gaza have also hit the Holy Family church. The attacks against the civilian population that Israel has been carrying out for months are unacceptable. No military action can justify such behaviour,' said Meloni. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The Holy Family Church's priest, Romanelli, used to receive daily calls for previous Pope Francis since the beginning of the war. Francis was a strong supporter of a ceasefire and frequently spoke of the death and devastation in Gaza. In his last public address before his death, he condemned the 'deplorable humanitarian situation' in Gaza and called upon Israel and Hamas to 'call for a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people, that aspires to a future of peace'.
GMA Network
3 days ago
- Politics
- GMA Network
Israeli strikes kill 22 in Gaza; 2 die in church Pope Francis often spoke to
A wounded Palestinian Christian woman is brought into at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital following an Israeli strike on The Church of the Holy Family, in Gaza City July 17, 2025. REUTERS/ Dawoud Abu Alkas CAIRO/JERUSALEM — Israeli forces killed at least 22 people in attacks in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, including two people who died in a strike on a church that late Pope Francis used to speak to regularly, medics and church officials said. Eight men tasked with protecting aid trucks were reported among the dead in airstrikes that were carried out while mediators continued ceasefire talks in Doha. A US official said this week the talks were going well but two officials from the Palestinian militant group Hamas told Reuters there had been no breakthrough as the Israeli military continued to pummel Gaza. A man and a woman died, and several people were wounded in "an apparent strike by the Israeli army" on Gaza's Holy Family Church, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said in a statement. "We pray that their souls rest [in peace] and for an end to this barbaric war. Nothing can justify the targeting of innocent civilians," said the Patriarchate, which oversees the church. Photos released by the church showed its roof had been hit close to the main cross, scorching the stone facade, and that windows had been broken. Father Gabriele Romanelli, an Argentine who used to regularly update the late Pope Francis about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, was lightly injured in the attack. TV footage showed him sitting receiving treatment at Al-Ahly Hospital in Gaza, with a bandage around his lower right leg. "The attacks against the civilian population that Israel has been carrying out for months are unacceptable. No military action can justify such an attitude," Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a statement. Pope Leo was "deeply saddened" by the loss of life and renewed his appeal for an immediate ceasefire, the Vatican said. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was aware of reports of casualties and was reviewing the incident. "The IDF makes every feasible effort to mitigate harm to civilians and civilian structures, including religious sites, and regrets any damage caused to them," it said. Israel has been trying to eradicate Hamas in Gaza in a military campaign that began after the group's deadly attack on Israel in October 2023 and has caused widespread hunger and privation in the tiny enclave. Palestinian medics said one airstrike on Thursday had killed a man, his wife and their five children in Jabalia in northern Gaza, and that another in the north had killed eight men who had been handed responsibility for protecting aid trucks. Three people were killed in an airstrike in central Gaza and four in Zeitoun in eastern Gaza, medics said. Ceasefire talks Arab mediators Qatar and Egypt, backed by the United States, have hosted more than 10 days of talks on a proposed US 60-day truce. As part of the potential deal, 10 hostages held in Gaza would be returned along with the bodies of 18 others, spread out over 60 days. In exchange, Israel would release detained Palestinians. The exact number is not clear. A Hamas source with knowledge of the matter said Israel had presented new maps to the mediators, pledging to pull the army further back than had previously been offered. The source said this partially met Hamas' demands, but was still insufficient. Disputes also remain over aid delivery mechanisms into Gaza, and guarantees that any eventual truce would lead to ending the war, said the two other Hamas officials who spoke to Reuters. Israel has told the mediators it is willing to drop its demand to maintain a military presence along the so-called Morag Corridor in southern Gaza during a ceasefire and is prepared to show flexibility regarding the size of the security buffer it would retain near the Israeli border, Israeli media reported. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office did not immediately comment on the reports. On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said that negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza were going well. A Palestinian official close to the talks said such optimistic comments were "empty of substance." Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed more than 58,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities. Almost 1,650 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed as a result of the conflict, including 1,200 killed in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack, according to Israeli tallies. — Reuters
Irish Independent
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Hamas seeks ceasefire pledge as scores more killed in Gaza
A 60-day ceasefire is within reach provided talks aimed at ending the war continue Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Dawoud Abu Alkas ©Reuters Hamas is seeking guarantees that a new US ceasefire proposal for Gaza would lead to the war's end, a source close to the militant group said yesterday, as medics said Israeli strikes across the territory had killed scores more people. Israeli officials said prospects for reaching a ceasefire deal and hostage deal appeared high, nearly 21 months since the war between Israel and Hamas began.
Daily Maverick
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Hamas seeks ceasefire guarantees as scores more killed in Gaza
By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Dawoud Abu Alkas Israeli officials said prospects for reaching a ceasefire deal and hostage deal appeared high, nearly 21 months since the war between Israel and Hamas began. On the ground, intensified Israeli strikes across Gaza continued unabated, killing at least 59 people on Thursday, according to health authorities in the territory. Efforts for a Gaza truce have gathered steam after the U.S. secured a ceasefire to end a 12-day aerial conflict between Israel and Iran. On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Israel had accepted the conditions needed to finalise a 60-day ceasefire with Hamas, during which the parties will work to end the war. Hamas is seeking clear guarantees that the ceasefire will eventually lead to the war's end, the source close to the group said. Two Israeli officials said that those details were still being worked out. Ending the war has been the main sticking point in repeated rounds of failed negotiations. A separate source familiar with the matter said that Israel was expecting Hamas' response by Friday and that if it was positive, an Israeli delegation would join indirect talks to cement the deal. It was unclear whether those would be held in Egypt or Qatar, the two countries that have been mediating talks. The proposal includes the staggered release of 10 living Israeli hostages and the return of the bodies of 18 more in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, sources say. Of the 50 remaining hostages in Gaza, 20 are believed to still be alive. A senior Israeli official close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said preparations were in place to approve a ceasefire deal even as the premier heads to Washington to meet Trump on Monday. 'READINESS TO ADVANCE' Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen, who sits on Netanyahu's security cabinet, told news website Ynet that there was 'definitely readiness to advance a deal.' In Gaza, however, there was little sign of relief. At least 17 people were killed in an Israeli strike that hit a school in Gaza City where displaced families were sheltering, according to medics. 'Suddenly, we found the tent collapsing over us and a fire burning. We don't know what happened,' one witness, Wafaa Al-Arqan, told Reuters. 'What can we do? Is it fair that all these children burned?' According to medics at Nasser hospital farther south, at least 20 people were killed by Israeli fire en route to an aid distribution site. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports and that its forces were taking precautions to mitigate harm to civilians as it battled Palestinian militants throughout Gaza. The war began when Hamas fighters stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's subsequent military assault has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry, while displacing most of the population of more than 2 million, triggering widespread hunger and leaving much of the territory in ruins. Israel says it won't end the war while Hamas is still armed and ruling Gaza. Hamas, severely weakened, says it won't lay down its weapons but is willing to release all the hostages still in Gaza if Israel ends the war.
Straits Times
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Hamas seeks ceasefire guarantees, says source, as scores more killed in Gaza
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Palestinians inspect the damage at a school sheltering displaced people, following an overnight Israeli airstrike, in Gaza City, July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas – Hamas is seeking guarantees that a new US ceasefire proposal for Gaza would lead to the war's end, a source close to the militant group said on July 3, as medics said Israeli strikes across the territory killed scores more people. Israeli officials said prospects for reaching a ceasefire deal and hostage deal appeared high, nearly 21 months since the war between Israel and Hamas began. On the ground, intensified Israeli strikes across Gaza continued unabated, killing at least 59 people on July 3, according to the health authorities in the territory. Efforts for a Gaza truce have gathered steam after the US secured a ceasefire to end a 12-day aerial conflict between Israel and Iran . On July 1, US President Donald Trump said that Israel had accepted the conditions needed to finalise a 60-day ceasefire with Hamas, during which the parties will work to end the war. Hamas is seeking clear guarantees that the ceasefire will eventually lead to the war's end, the source close to the group said. Two Israeli officials said that those details were still being worked out. Ending the war has been the main sticking point in repeated rounds of failed negotiations. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 193ha of land off Changi to be reclaimed for aviation park; area reduced to save seagrass meadow Singapore PAP questions Pritam's interview with Malaysian podcast, WP says PAP opposing for the sake of opposing Singapore 1 in 4 appeals to waive HDB wait-out period for private home owners approved since Sept 2022 World Liverpool's Portuguese forward Diogo Jota dies in car crash in Spain Singapore Healthcare facility planned for site of Ang Mo Kio Public Library after it moves to AMK Hub Singapore $500 in Child LifeSG credits, Edusave, Post-Sec Education Account top-ups to be disbursed in July Business 60 S'pore firms to get AI boost from Tata Consultancy as it launches new innovation centre here Singapore Scoot launches flights to Da Nang, Kota Bharu and Nha Trang; boosts frequency to other destinations A separate source familiar with the matter said that Israel was expecting Hamas' response by July 4 and that if it was positive, an Israeli delegation would join indirect talks to cement the deal. It was unclear whether those would be held in Egypt or Qatar, the two countries that have been mediating talks. The proposal includes the staggered release of 10 living Israeli hostages and the return of the bodies of 18 more in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, sources say. Of the 50 remaining hostages in Gaza, 20 are believed to still be alive . A senior Israeli official close to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said preparations were in place to approve a ceasefire deal even as the leader heads to Washington to meet Mr Trump on July 7 . 'Readiness to advance' Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen, who sits on Mr Netanyahu's security Cabinet, told news website Ynet that there was 'definitely readiness to advance a deal'. In Gaza, however, there were few signs of relief. At least 17 people were killed in an Israeli strike that hit a school in Gaza City where displaced families were sheltering, according to medics. 'Suddenly, we found the tent collapsing over us and a fire burning. We don't know what happened,' witness Wafaa Al-Arqan told Reuters. 'What can we do? Is it fair that all these children burned?' According to medics at Nasser Hospital farther south, at least 20 people were killed by Israeli fire en route to an aid distribution site. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports and that its forces were taking precautions to mitigate harm to civilians as it battled Palestinian militants throughout Gaza. The war began when Hamas fighters stormed into Israel on Oct 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's subsequent military assault has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry, while displacing most of the population of more than two million, triggering widespread hunger and leaving much of the territory in ruins. Israel says it will not end the war while Hamas is still armed and ruling Gaza. Hamas, severely weakened, says it will not lay down its weapons but is willing to release all the hostages still in Gaza if Israel ends the war. REUTERS
