On Saturday, 16 December 2023, an Israeli sniper shot and killed Nahida Boulos and her daughter Samar Anton (pictured right) as they were walking inside the compound of the Holy Family Church in Gaza. Seven more people were shot and wounded.

The Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem released a statement, saying “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 Israeli Defence Forces denied that the IDF had anything to do with the incident.

Pope Francis spoke out against the killings on Sunday 17 December 2023, saying:

“I continue to receive very serious and painful news from Gaza. Unarmed civilians are subjected to bombings and shootings,” the Holy Father said.

“And this even happened inside the parish complex of the Holy Family, where there are no terrorists, but families, children, sick and disabled people, nuns,” he said.

“Yes, it’s war, it’s terrorism,” the pope said. 

From “IDF denies responsibility for killing of Palestinian Christians at Gaza church”, 18 December 2023, Catholic News Agency: https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256306/idf-denies-responsibility-for-killing-of-palestinian-christians

The Archbishop of Westminster in the UK, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, spoke about the incident with Sky News in the UK, calling it a “cold-blooded killing.”

Israeli spokesperson Mark Regev denied that Israel shot the churchgoers with Sky News. Regev said “to say that Israel is deliberately targeting Christian worshippers is a terrible accusation that is unfounded.”

Fast forward four days

Today, Wednesday 20 December 2023, Israel’s story changed. Israeli settler media Arutz Sheva (“Channel 7”) published an article in which the IDF admitted it was in the area of the killings but—incredibly—claimed that it targeted “HAMAS spotters”—not two civilians seeking refuge during Israel’s genocidal campaign against Gaza.

FULL TEXT:

The IDF on Tuesday concluded an initial review of an incident on Sunday in which two women were reportedly shot in the area of the Latin Church in Shejaya, Gaza.

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem blamed the IDF for the incident, claiming its snipers shot dead the two women, a mother and daughter, while they were inside the church.

The Patriarchate accused the IDF of shooting the women “in cold blood and without warning” inside the premises of the church.

The IDF said in a statement on Tuesday that the review “found that on December 17th, in the early afternoon, Hamas terrorists launched a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) at IDF troops from the vicinity of the church. The troops then identified three people in the vicinity, operating as spotters for Hamas by guiding their attacks in the direction of the IDF troops. In response, our troops fired towards the spotters and hits were identified.”

“While this incident occurred in the area where the two women were reportedly killed, the reports received do not match the conclusion of our initial review which found that the IDF troops were targeting spotters in enemy lookouts. We are continuing our examination of the incident,” the statement added.

“The IDF takes claims of strikes on sensitive sites very seriously, especially churches that are the holy sites for the Christian faith. The IDF directs its operations against the Hamas terrorist organization and not against civilians, regardless of their religious affiliation.”

“The IDF takes many measures to mitigate harm to civilians in the Gaza Strip. These efforts stand in contrast to Hamas that does everything in its power to endanger civilians and exploits them, as well as religious sites, as human shields for their terrorist activities,” the statement concluded.

Source: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/382240