Jerusalem: In the wake of Israel’s newly approved plan to seize control of Gaza City, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem have issued a joint plea urging an immediate halt to the war. Citing Proverbs 12:28 “In the path of righteousness there is life, and in its pathway there is no death” the Patriarchs declared that the cycle of destruction must end, and families on all sides must be given the chance to heal.
The joint statement came as Israeli evacuation orders for parts of Gaza City intensified amid heavy bombardment. Nearly one million civilians, including Gaza’s Christian minority, are trapped between the threat of displacement and the dangers of staying. The Patriarchs warned that Israel’s earlier caution that “the gates of hell will open” has already become a reality, with escalating violence and mass civilian suffering.
For months, the Greek Orthodox compound of St. Porphyrius and the Latin Church of the Holy Family have provided shelter to hundreds of displaced people, including persons with disabilities cared for by the Missionaries of Charity. But with evacuation orders now in place, those sheltering face an impossible decision: remain amid the bombardment or flee south into worsening famine and insecurity.
The Patriarchs condemned any plan for forced displacement, saying, “There can be no future built on imprisonment, exile, or vengeance.” Echoing Pope Leo XIV’s recent appeal on behalf of refugees, they underlined that all peoples “even the smallest and weakest” have the right to live in their own land without coercion or exile.
With famine already threatening over half a million people in Gaza and more than 60,000 lives lost since October 2023, the Patriarchs warned that continuing the war only deepens wounds. “This is not the right path. There is no justification for the deliberate and forced displacement of civilians,” they insisted.
Calling upon the international community to intervene, the Patriarchs urged urgent steps to secure the release of missing persons and hostages, and to end the spiral of violence devastating the Holy Land.
They concluded with a prayer for transformation of hearts and the pursuit of justice: “It is time to end this cycle of violence, to end the war, and to walk the path of life for Gaza, and for all the Holy Land.”