The shooting of a mother and daughter allegedly by an Israeli military sniper in a church compound in Gaza City was a “cold–blooded killing”, the most senior Catholic cleric in England has said.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the archbishop of Westminster, said the shooting did “nothing to further Israel’s right to defend itself”.
The two women were killed inside the Holy Family parish in Gaza City on Saturday, according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Most of Gaza’s Christian families have taken refuge in the compound since the start of the war.
Nahida Khalil Anton and her daughter Samar were shot as they walked to the sister’s convent, the patriarchate said. One was killed as she tried to carry the other to safety.
“Seven more people were shot and wounded as they tried to protect others inside the church compound. No warning was given, no notification was provided. They were shot in cold blood inside the premises of the parish, where there are no belligerents.”
Nichols, who has twice visited the parish, told Sky News on Monday: “This [happened] within what has been clearly designated as a church place, which I cannot believe for a minute has rocket launchers in it [as Israel claims]. It’s a community that, since October, has sheltered hundreds of people and looked after them.”
He added: “It’s certainly a cold-blooded killing. What absolutely puzzles me is that this does nothing to further Israel’s right to defend itself.”
Antonio Tajani, the Italian foreign minister, also criticised Israeli forces on Monday for allegedly shooting and killing people in the church compound, saying such actions would not help in its war to defeat Hamas.
“This has nothing to do with the fight against Hamas because the terrorists are certainly not hiding in Christian churches,” he said.
On Sunday, Pope Francis suggested Israel was using “terrorism” tactics in Gaza as he deplored the killing of the women.
The pontiff said: “Unarmed civilians are the objects of bombings and shootings. And this happened even inside the Holy Family parish complex, where there are no terrorists but families, children, people who are sick or disabled, nuns.
“Some would say, ‘It is war. It is terrorism.’ Yes, it is war. It is terrorism.”
Mark Regev, a senior adviser to the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said: “We don’t shoot people who are going to church to pray, it just doesn’t happen, that’s not the way the [Israel Defense Forces] operates.”
Responding to Nichols’ comments, he told Sky News an investigation was under way. “Could they have been killed [in the crossfire] by Palestinian terrorists who were shooting at our people indiscriminately? I don’t know.”
He added: “I think the pope and the archbishop are relying on reports that they’ve heard come out of Gaza. Hamas has the guns. People won’t speak out of tune without facing violent retribution – that’s the fact of life in Hamas territory – so one has to be very careful with these reports.”
Relatives of Layla Moran, the Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, were “under siege by Israeli forces” at the Holy Family church complex, she told the Guardian at the weekend.
Moran said her relatives – her grandmother, her son, his wife and their 11-year-old twins – had been inside the church since their home was bombed in the first week of the war, and were now “absolutely terrified”.
She added that Israeli forces had since “taken the building opposite the Holy Family church, and there are now snipers at every window with their guns pointing into the church. There’s also a tank that’s taken up position outside. Anyone trying to move around is being shot at.”
