Caritas Internationalis issued a statement on “the man-made famine and assault on Gaza City” following the Israel Defense Forces’ latest incursion into the embattled enclave, where the United Nations declared famine last week.
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“This is not war. It is the systematic destruction of civilian life,” the renowned international Catholic aid organization wrote in its Aug. 25 statement. “The siege of Gaza has become a machinery of annihilation, sustained by impunity and the silence, or complicity, of powerful nations.”
“Famine here is not a natural disaster but the outcome of a deliberate strategy: blocking aid, bombing food convoys, destroying infrastructure, and denying basic needs,” the aid group declared. “Caritas Internationalis bears witness to this horror.”
The statement continued: “Civilians, mostly children and women, are being starved, bombed, and erased. Influential governments, corporations, and multinationals have enabled this catastrophe through military support, financial aid, and diplomatic cover.”
Caritas went on to condemn “hollow declarations and empty platitudes” offered by the international community in response to the plight of Gazans.
“Caritas Internationalis sees in Gaza a deliberate assault on human dignity and the collapse of moral order, a failure of leadership, responsibility, and humanity itself,” the organization said. “In the light of the Spirit that guides us, Caritas Internationalis abhors all these acts and omissions in the strongest terms. They represent a blatant disregard for the values and fundamental principles of humanity and clearly violate international law, international humanitarian law, and international human rights law, as well as numerous provisions of specific U.N. conventions, including the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.”
The statement comes after an Israeli strike hit Nasser Hospital in Gaza on Monday, “killing at least 20 people, including five journalists,” according to Reuters.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on social media after the strike: “Israel deeply regrets the tragic mishap that occurred today at the Nasser Hospital in Gaza. Israel values the work of journalists, medical staff, and all civilians.”
“The military authorities are conducting a thorough investigation,” he added. “Our war is with Hamas terrorists. Our just goals are defeating Hamas and bringing our hostages home.”
Israel similarly issued a statement after striking Gaza’s only Catholic Church last month, saying “a deviation of munitions” had led to an accidental strike on Holy Family Catholic Church. Three people were killed in the strike and nine injured, including the parish’s pastor, Father Gabriel Romanelli.
Caritas concluded its blistering statement with a list of demands, including a complete and immediate ceasefire, humanitarian aid, the release of all hostages, and an end to “Israel’s unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
“The famine in Gaza is a test of moral integrity, and too many have failed. To starve a population is to desecrate life. To remain silent is to be complicit,” the organization stated, concluding: “Caritas Internationalis calls on all people of faith and conscience to raise their voices, pressure their governments, and demand justice. The world is watching. History is recording. And Gaza is waiting, not for words, but for salvation.”
This article was originally published by CNA.
Madalaine Elhabbal is a staff reporter for Catholic News Agency based at EWTN’s Washington, D.C., bureau. She has been published by CatholicVote and has also worked as foreign language assistant in France. She is a graduate of Benedictine College.
