Episcopal Statement made by The Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East
STATEMENT BY THE EPISCOPAL DIOCESE OF JERUSALEM CONDEMNING TODAY’S ATTACK AT AHLI HOSPITAL, GAZA CITY
5 June 2025
This morning at about 10:20 am local time, Israeli forces fired inside the compound of our Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, killing three journalists, as well as two others, including a father who was escorting his son to our surgical unit for treatment from previous injuries. In addition, this unprovoked assault against civilians wounded thirty other bystanders, among them four of our hospital staff.
The Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem condemns this attack in the strongest possible terms, calling upon the Israeli Army to respect the internationally protected sanctity of Ahli Hospital and all other hospitals throughout the Gaza Strip, as their beleaguered doctors, nurses, and medical staff seek to treat those innocents, mostly women and children, who have been severely injured in continued military assaults. We further call upon the leaders of the international community to enforce the combatants’ adherence to the Fourth Geneva Convention with respect to its provisions for special protections for hospitals, medical personnel, journalists, and civilians in general.
Finally, we bid Christians and others of goodwill around the world to join us in their continued prayers and efforts to bring this conflict to a speedy end, leading to the release of all captives, the more comprehensive treatment of the wounded, the feeding of the desperately hungry, and the rebuilding of the tens of thousands of homes and hundreds of public facilities that have been destroyed. Only in this way, we believe, can the healing begin, and the pathway towards a just and lasting peace open for all of those living in our beloved Holy Land.