The Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius and its compound in Gaza City have been ordered to evacuate by the Israel Defense Forces, the Times of Israel learned Wednesday.
At the same time, the Catholic Church of Holy Family, also in Gaza City, is located in an area that, for the moment, has not received an evacuation order.
The information is supported by the evacuation map featured on the IDF Arabic website, which shows St. Porphyrius, but not the Holy Family, in a red zone.
The third church in the Strip, the Anglican St. Philip’s Church, which is part of the compound of the Al-Ahli Arab Anglican Hospital in Gaza City, also stands in an area under evacuation order, according to the IDF map.
The orders come as Israel gears up for a mass evacuation of the civilian population from Gaza City ahead of a planned military offensive to take the Strip’s largest city as Israel looks to defeat Hamas.
On Tuesday, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem issued a joint statement condemning the difficult situation of their communities in the Strip and announcing that their clergy and nuns would not leave.
The statement did not explicitly say that the compounds, which shelter hundreds of refugees and vulnerable Gazans, including elderly, women, children, and people with disabilities, had received a direct order to evacuate.
“At the time of this statement, evacuation orders were already in place for several neighborhoods in Gaza City,” reads the statement. “Since the outbreak of the war, the Greek Orthodox compound of Saint Porphyrius and the Holy Family compound have been a refuge for hundreds of civilians… Leaving Gaza City and trying to flee to the south would be nothing less than a death sentence. For this reason, the clergy and nuns have decided to remain and continue to care for all those who will be in the compounds.”
“We do not know exactly what will happen on the ground, not only for our community, but for the entire population,” the statement adds.
A spokesperson for the Protecting Holy Land Christians group, which was initiated by the Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III but works closely with other Churches as well, told The Times of Israel that as of Monday morning, neither church had received a direct order to evacuate, though the situation in their surroundings was very dire.
“Bombing around the churches is nonstop,” she said.
However, based on the information learned by The Times of Israel, the compound of St. Porphyrius is supposed to evacuate.
The compound was hit by an Israeli strike a few days after the beginning of the war, on October 20, 2023. At the time, the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry stated several people were killed (the number could not be independently verified, but former US congressman Justin Amash said some of his relatives were dead).
In July 2024, the Episcopal Church of Jerusalem and the Middle East said that the compound of the Al-Ahli hospital had been forced to close as a result of the evacuation of several residential districts ordered by the military, but the IDF stated it had made it clear there was no need to close hospitals or medical centers in the areas where it ordered evacuations due to military operations against terror groups.
In July, three people were killed and several were injured in an IDF strike on the Holy Family Church compound. The military later said that a misfired munition was to blame.
The incident caused significant international outrage and condemnation, and a blow to Israel’s relations with the Christian world.
The IDF has been pushing forward with the plan to conquer Gaza City for several weeks, operating on the outskirts of the city ahead of a larger ground operation that is set to take place in the near future.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has argued that conquering the city, which is currently home to around one million Palestinians, will allow Israel to secure a victory against Hamas (a claim he has made several times in the past, referring to other military operations).
The military has called up an additional 60,000 reservists for the operation. The troops are set to report for duty starting from September 2.
The plans to conquer Gaza City have drawn fierce opposition from hostages’ families who fear the planned operation will risk the lives of their loved ones, as well as international outcry, with governments and humanitarian groups warning of potentially disastrous consequences for Gaza’s civilians.