Islamists and the Tragedy of Holy Family Church

Three Christians were killed and ten others wounded last Thursday when an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) mortar round struck Holy Family Church—Gaza’s only Catholic parish—where civilians, Muslim and Christian, had been sheltering since the war began after October 7, 2023. As of today, the IDF confirmed that the church was hit by stray munitions (from a mortar, not a tank as previously alleged). While the tragic incident underscores the vulnerability of civilians in conflict zones, Western outrage—if lacking nuance—risks playing into Hamas’s narrative of indiscriminate Israeli aggression, ultimately serving its strategic aims.