"The clergy and nuns have decided to stay and continue caring for all those in the compounds. Leaving Gaza and attempting to flee south would be a death sentence."

With these words, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and the Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III announced today their decision not to abandon the Strip.

The joint statement concerns Gaza's two main Christian communities , the parish of the Holy Family and that of Saint Porphyry, both already hit by bombing and now serving as shelter for hundreds of civilians: elderly, women, children, and people with disabilities. "Many of them are weakened and malnourished due to the hardships of recent months," the two patriarchs explain.

The statement strongly rejects any suggestion of forced evacuation : "There can be no future based on captivity, the displacement of Palestinians, or revenge. There is no reason to justify the deliberate and forced mass displacement of civilians."

Meanwhile, dramatic testimonies are coming in from Gaza . "Moving outside the church is very, very difficult and dangerous," says George Anton, head of the Holy Family emergency committee. "People need to move to get food and water, but everyone fears that the next military operation could be extremely violent and put their lives at risk."

Harsh words were also spoken outside the Gaza Strip . On the eve of the Venice Film Festival, Father Nando Capovilla—a priest close to Pope Francis and recently expelled from Israel—spoke of "a precise plan for ethnic cleansing" and denounced: "The genocide can be stopped, and we are not doing so."

Finally, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, speaking at the Rimini Meeting, made a plea for Christian unity : "As Christians, we need to make our voices heard, united, as our brothers Teofilo and Pizzaballa did. Without justice, there is no peace."

(Unioneonline/Fr.Me.)

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