On March 18, more than 400 people were killed in Gaza following a wave of Israeli attacks; bombings that almost reached the only Catholic parish in the area. This is how the parish priest, Father Romanelli, explained it to the Vatican media.
The shelling woke us up. They were close, 300-400 meters away. Fortunately, no shrapnel landed. We are fine, but in the whole Strip there is already talk of more than 350 dead and more than a thousand wounded.
A new situation that threatens the cease-fire which, although it has been unstable during these two months, was about to enter phase two. In fact, the Catholics in Gaza had already become accustomed to a climate of a certain serenity.
We hope that what happened tonight does not put an end to the ceasefire; that the war does not start again. In this period, we have seen more humanitarian aid coming in, especially food.
So far in the war, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem has assisted more than 8,000 families. Caritas provided direct assistance to more than 100,000 people.
As per UN data from early March, only 30% of the agreed humanitarian aid has reached Gaza. In addition, 90% of the population is displaced and more than half of the buildings and infrastructure are damaged.
The war has also had economic consequences for the people of Gaza. The aid blockade and electricity cuts have caused the prices of basic commodities to soar.
Just imagine: if a kilogram of chicken used to cost 5 dollars, now it costs 14; almost three times the initial cost. The impact of this situation falls, above all, on children, where malnutrition is growing.
JH
