Patriarchs fear ‘death sentence’ for Gaza residents
August 26, 2025
» Continue to this story on Vatican Press Office
CWN Editor's Note: The Catholic and Greek Orthodox Patriarchs of Jerusalem have issued a joint plea for peace, saying that “there has been enough destruction” in Gaza, and warning that an Israeli plan to occupy the city of Gaza would cause a humanitarian disaster.
Israel has ordered the evacuation of the city, instructing residents to move to the south of Gaza. That order “would, for many, be a death sentence,” the Patriarchs predict, noting that many of the city’s occupants are now weak, malnourished, or disabled. Priests and religious have promised to remain in Gaza to care for those in need.
Citing an Israeli threat that “the gates of hell will open” against Hamas, the patriarchs respond that those words are “not merely a threat—it is a reality already underway.”
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