Pope Francis expressed gratitude, Friday, for the cease-fire in the Holy Land. “My thoughts turn to the events taking place these days in the Holy Land,” Francis said, referring to the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. “I thank God for the decision to halt the armed conflicts and acts of violence, and I Read more
Israel has accused World Vision manager for the Gaza region of funneling millions of dollars to Islamist militant group Hamas. Mohammad El Halabi (photographed above) was arrested by Israel on June 15 while crossing the border into Gaza, World Vision said in a statement. He was charged by Israeli authorities on Thursday. He had run Read more
Is there anything left to say about Israel and Gaza? Newspapers this summer have been full of little else. Television viewers see heaps of rubble and plumes of smoke in their sleep. A representative article from a recent issue of The New Yorker described the summer’s events by dedicating one sentence each to the horrors Read more
Auckland’s Catholic and Anglican bishops have called on Israel to return to its pre-1967 borders in accordance with United Nations’ requests. In a joint statement, Catholic Bishop Patrick Dunn and Anglican Bishop Ross Bay said such an act by Israel would be “a pre-requisite for dialogue to establish a lasting and just settlement in the Read more
Israel pulled out of the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, but left behind death and destruction. Israeli sociologist Eva Illouz tells SPIEGEL that her country is gripped by fear and is becoming increasingly suspicious of democracy. SPIEGEL: There was widespread support in Israel for the operation in the Gaza Strip, despite the huge numbers of civilian Read more
Given that the Vatican “gay lobby” story was back in the air this week, it may be hard for some to fathom that anything else is cooking on the church beat. Yet there is real news out there, including this: A new threat has emerged to the Christian community in the Gaza Strip, estimated at just 3,000 Read more
Christians in Gaza face a new threat as the Hamas government has decided to ban coeducational schools. This means the five Christian schools on the strip, two Catholic and three Protestant, may have to close — even though they serve a largely Muslim population. National Catholic Reporter correspondent John Allen points out that the distorting Read more