Parish priest and friend of Pope Francis among several injured in strike on Catholic church in Gaza

Two women were killed and several people were injured following a strike on the Catholic parish in the Gaza Strip, doctors a hospital in Gaza City said Thursday.

Strikes hit the Holy Family Church in northern Gaza on Thursday morning, injuring several people including the parish priest, officials with the Catholic Church said.

Parish priest Fr. Gabriel Romanelli was very close with the late Pope Francis and the two spoke often during the war in Gaza.

The church — the only Catholic church in Gaza — was damaged in the attack, officials said, in what witnesses said appeared to be an Israeli tank shelling.

The Israeli military did not have immediate comment on the strike.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni blamed Israel for the church strike. "The attacks on the civilian population that Israel has been demonstrating for months are unacceptable. No military action can justify such an attitude," she said.