Posted on 10/21/2023 10:17:10 PM PDT by Morgana
A former U.S. congressman said several of his relatives were among the casualties when an Israeli airstrike hit a church in Gaza, which killed at least 18 people.
Justin Amash, a Palestinian-American who formerly represented Michigan, revealed on social media that his relatives had been taking refuge in the Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church compound in Gaza, partially destroyed by an Israeli airstrike on Thursday.
"With great sadness, I have now confirmed that several of my relatives were killed at Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church in Gaza, where they had been sheltering, when part of the complex was destroyed as the result of an Israeli airstrike," Amash wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Give rest, O Lord, to their souls, and may their memories be eternal."
The Israel Defense Forces admitted that a portion of the church complex had been damaged during an airstrike targeting Hamas military compounds but maintained that the church itself was not the intended target. The Patriarchate of Jerusalem accused Israel of a "war crime."
Israel has carried out retaliatory airstrikes since Hamas attacked communities in southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing over 1,400 civilians, including 30 Americans.
Amash was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 2011 to 2021 and left the Republican Party in 2019 to join the Libertarian Party.
Palestinian officials noted that the Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius sheltered around 500 Muslims and Christians from Israeli bombings. Palestinian health officials claim as many as 16 of the victims were Christians.
"The Palestinian Christian community has endured so much," Amash tweeted. "Our family is hurting badly. May God watch over all Christians in Gaza — and all Israelis and Palestinians who are suffering, whatever their religion or creed."
Fr. Issa Musleh of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Bethlehem told Al Jazeera dozens were found injured as rescue efforts continue. Ibrahim Jahsan, a Christian residing in Gaza, had taken refuge in the church along with his pregnant wife and two young children. He told Al Jazeera that he believed that the church would provide a safe sanctuary during the conflict.
On Friday, a mass funeral was held in the church courtyard where the bodies, wrapped in white sheets, lay next to the debris that claimed their lives, The Guardian reported, noting that four of the deceased were small children.
Palestinian health officials report over 4,100 Palestinians killed since airstrikes began, with over 13,000 injured.
In a joint statement, United Nations agencies called for a "humanitarian ceasefire, along with immediate, unrestricted humanitarian access throughout Gaza to allow humanitarian actors to reach civilians in need, save lives and prevent further human suffering." The agencies state that over 1.6 million people in Gaza are in critical need of humanitarian aid.
The Israeli government warned over 1 million people in northern Gaza last week to evacuate to southern Gaza as it readies for a potential ground invasion.
On Saturday, the first convoy of humanitarian assistance crossed into Gaza since the Hamas attack on Oct. 7.
"The opening of this essential supply route was the result of days of diplomatic engagement at the highest levels," U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement. "I made it clear from the outset of this crisis — in both my public statements and private conversations — that humanitarian assistance was a critical and urgent need that had to get moving, and I express my deep personal appreciation for the leadership of President Al-Sisi of Egypt, Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel, and the United Nations to allow the resumption of this assistance."
And may come as a surprise that there are “Christians” in the middle east (and here in the USA) who hate Israel and Jews just as much as the jihadis do. And not just the lunatic fringe of neo-KKK types in Michigan. Amash doesn’t have a stellar reputation for veracity, either.
When an army is telling you have safe passage out for this long. You bug out or prepare to fight. There’s no neutral on a battlefield. It may not be right but it is so. Not all killed in battles are combatants.
>> I stand with Jesus. I do what he says.
Wonderful! Jesus said in Matthew 10:16: “Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves.”
So literally for GOD’s sake, Palestinian Christians, get your shrewd asses the hell out of harm’s way!
And you, Morgana: since you “do what he says”, how about SUPPORTING the CHRIST in the Truth He spoke??!?
Do you really think the Christians and leave the with Muslims? How do you think that will work out? Have any of you stopped to think how that would work out? Both of them in a refugee camp?
Have some compassion for your fellow Christians please!
See my post 24
Honestly? I don’t even know the guy.
>> See my post 24
I did. Can you please put a lid on the hyperventilating and rewrite it in the English language so I can understand it? Thanks!
I’ve had a really bad night. No really. I had a death in the family. I’m not okay and can’t type correctly.
I believe you. I am sorry to hear about the death of your loved one. I am praying for you.
Philippians 4:6-7
Sorry to hear that. I hope and pray for you and for your loved ones.
> So why do they need to leave?
Because the church is north of the Gaza Wadi?
Why did they need to stay?
So, the solution is Jew death.
Understood.
Unless you have another solution, the only way to bring peace to Gaza is to kill every Jew in Israel. That is only temporary, because when they satiate themselves with klling off the Jews, they will immediately head to Europe to do the same thing there. Then, the only solution will be to kill every European in order to bring peace to Europe. Then, we will have to kill every African and Every Russian and Asian and then everybody in North America and then South America.
Then, and only then, will there be peace upon this house in accordance to Islam.
>> Then, and only then, will there be peace upon this house in accordance to Islam.
Hey, don’t forget Christians! They hate us for the same reason they hate Jews. We are in their crosshairs!
(Of course, in real America, THEY are in OUR crosshairs.)
You are correct: there are many Christians in the Gaza Strip, and estimates vary from 3,000 and up.
HAMAS is just barely more interested in killing Jews, burying Israel, exterminating the line of David and all historical records pertaining.
That jihadi intensity, waxes and wanes; except, since 2014, that waxes. There are many more terrorists, supplies, missiles, etc., than estimated (until now) by interested parties - IMHO.
Where people take shelter in the church, and thereabouts, and the same for hospitals, there, Israel will have to go in on the ground and dig out HAMAS. If reducing HAMAS is the objective.
Otherwise, Israel will lose support.
IMHO, if Israel has a ground game to tackle HAMAS targets, then Israel had better go to it . . . with an expectation of handling many 10’s of thousands of civilians.
Israel cannot avoid a very large humanitarian mission that is part of rooting out HAMAS.
- - -
Take care.
According to Israel, they were targeting a nearby Hamas rocket and mortar command post. If so, the damage to the church complex and fatalities and other injuries to the civilians there wasn’t a war crime, but collateral damage.
But I can't help noticing where the church was, smack dab in the middle of the area Israel has been warning ALL CIVILIANS to LEAVE (North Gaza) for over a week now.
Sadly, they probably have been prevented from doing so by Hamas, which has setup roadblocks and shot and blown up cars trying to flee South.
bkmk - location of Church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza Strip
I’m including the whole world in my assessment. If it’s not Islam, it is in its crosshairs. All Jews and all Christians are targets.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.