We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
A YOUNG MAN who was seriously injured in an Israeli attack on Gaza’s only Catholic parish has said he hopes he can “start his life again after the attack”.
On Thursday, an Israeli tank attacked the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza, which the late Pope Francis called daily.
Over 600 people, both Christians and Muslims, are sheltered in the parish within its church and school – the majority are children and 54 have additional needs.
Three people were killed and ten others were injured in the attack, including the parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli.
Suhail Abo Dawood, a young Catholic student from Gaza, was also seriously injured.
From Gaza, he contributes to L’Osservatore Romano with his column: “I write to you from Gaza.”
L’Osservatore Romano is the daily newspaper of Vatican City.
His most recent column on 8 July was titled ‘Love Is Stronger Than War’.
In a video message from his hospital bed, he repeated this message to L’Osservatore Romano’s Jerusalem correspondent, Roberto Cetera.
Suhail is a young Catholic student from Gaza, seriously wounded in the Israeli attack on the Holy Family parish on Thursday.
— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) July 19, 2025
He writes a column for L’Osservatore Romano, the Holy See’s newspaper.
Although Suhail sustained shrapnel wounds to his internal organs during… pic.twitter.com/f8fvVMCRXt
He sustained shrapnel wounds to his internal organs during Thursday’s attack, but the shrapnel has now been removed and his condition has improved.
He said he is feeling “much better than yesterday” and thanked people for their prayers and messages.
“I hope I can start my life again and continue my vocation in Italy.”
He added: “As always, love is stronger than war.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed regret for the deaths, which he blamed on a “stray” round after a phone call with US President Donald Trump.
However, the top Catholic official in the Middle East questioned whether is was a mistake.
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, told Vatican News the IDF claimed that the strike by a tank was “by mistake”.
However, he added: “We are not sure about this, they hit the church directly.”
Catholic media outlet The Pillar reports that a tank was allegedly involved in the attack, and reporters in Gaza have reported that a drone strike had also taken place.
Cardinal Pizzaballa told The Pillar that he is “not sure” whether the attack was entirely accidental.
In a social media post, Israel claimed it “never targets churches or religious sites and regrets any harm to a religious site or to uninvolved civilians”.
Cardinal Pizzaballa also said the church compound had been a “sanctuary” where people hoped to escape the “horrors of the war”.
El párroco argentino Gabriel Romanelli fue herido luego de que atacaran la iglesia Sagrada Familia en Gaza. El bombardeo dejó a dos muertos y cuatro heridos.
— Corta (@somoscorta) July 17, 2025
📹 Vía: @CatholicArena pic.twitter.com/aZe1ViGOEx
He also assisted in evacuating people injured in the attack.
Pope Leo XIV spoke to Netanyahu on the phone yesterday morning and is said to have “repeated his appeal for a renewed push for negotiations, a ceasefire and an end to the war”.
“He again expressed his concern about the tragic humanitarian situation for the population of Gaza, whose children, elderly and sick are paying an agonising price,” said the Holy See press office.
The late Pope Francis had been in daily contact with the Holy Family Church since 9 October, 2023, two days after the bombings began in Gaza.
The late pontiff described the parish community as “very courageous” and he used his final public address to call for an end to the “deplorable humanitarian situation’ in Gaza.
Francis also described some Israeli actions in Gaza as “terrorism” in his memoir.
Israel’s retaliatory military offensive has killed at least 58,765 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in Gaza.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say