Christians persecuted

Shamraiz Masih, 14, was cajoled and abducted. His mother, Rehana Imran, report the matter to the police, but the officers showed only apathy and disinterest. The court placed the child in custody with distant Muslim relatives. “This is not an isolated case,” says an activist.

Fr Romanelli says that "the entire Gaza Strip is dangerous," but Gaza City is "even more so." There are “constant bombardments”, but the parish has not yet received an "evacuation order." The Custody of the Holy Land and the Latin Patriarchate are with Pope Leo fasting and praying for peace. According to Israeli military sources, 83 percent of the deaths in the Palestinian enclave are civilians.

Eighty representatives of the Modern Orthodox movement, led by Rabbi Yosef Blau, have launched an appeal calling for "moral clarity" and "responsibility" based on the values of Jewish tradition. While condemning Hamas, they call for a "response" to the tragedy in Gaza and criticise the "disturbing proposals" of Smotrich and Ben Gvir. For the rabbis, they must “speak out when our government’s actions contradict the Torah’s moral imperatives”. The Latin Patriarchate warns of evacuation orders in neighbourhoods near Gaza Catholic parish.

A Dalit worker told police that he was forced to remove the bodies of many victims of violence between 1995 and 2014. Having found some remains, the families of dozens of missing people are demanding full disclosure. But Hindu nationalists are calling this a "smear campaign", claiming (without evidence) that the man behind the charges was paid by Christians. For the Diocese of Mangalore, these claims are irresponsible.

The complaint was made in a statement by Protecting Holy Land Christians. The “reasoning” behind the decision is said to be linked to “the Arnona issue”. The Patriarchate “is currently unable to pay the salaries of clergy, teachers and staff”. In his homily on the Assumption, Cardinal Pizzaballa affirms that the blood of every ‘innocent’ in Gaza and around the world ‘is not forgotten.’

Sandra Awad, former Caritas director and now a UNICEF collaborator, has reported on the devastation of the war in recent years. Today she recalls that, despite violence and critical issues, the community plays a ‘fundamental role’ in spreading ‘the spirit of forgiveness’ and ‘healing sectarian divisions.’ She launches an appeal: ‘Free yourselves from the chains of fear.’

Of these, only 11 have been released on bail. The others remain in prison and join the more than 60 already in jail before the conflict for reasons of faith. According to the Ministry of Intelligence, they are “Mossad mercenaries” trained abroad by churches in the United States and Israel. Article 18: their “crime” was to have participated “in a gathering” of faithful “in a neighbouring country”.

The Chaldean primate recalls the death and destruction linked to the rise of the Islamic State, which are still present today. Lack of rights and security are driving people to flee. Added to this is the persecution by “militias” who practice “extortion, harassment, intimidation, and seizure of parliamentary seats.”

Gopichand Padalkar, a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, mocked the foundations of the Christian faith at a rally and promised money for attacks against believers. He also linked the suicide of a woman in Jalna to alleged “forced conversions”. For weeks, despite protests and complaints, the judiciary refused to open a case file.

A detailed report on this long-standing phenomenon was released today: an “impure” job reserved for non-Muslims. Although they make up only 2% of the population, 80% of garbage collectors are Christians, with the rest being Hindus. At least 84 have died in the last five years due to outdated infrastructure and techniques: their lives are not worth the cost of modernization. Amnesty: “Pakistan must recognize caste discrimination as a form of racism.”

Two nuns from the Green Garden Sisters of Agra were targeted at the Durg railway station by a group of Hindu nationalists while accompanying three Christian girls to work in a hospital run by their order, with the written consent of their parents. Cardinal Gracias: “India respects the law, but these attacks tarnish the image of the nation.”

In a strong oecumenical gesture, the Latin and Greek Orthodox patriarchs of Jerusalem visited the Holy Family parish bringing some 500 tonnes of aid. Answering a phone call from Netanyahu, Leo XIV reiterated his call for an end to “this slaughter”. A BBC report documents the scale of the systematic destruction with bulldozers of entire areas in Gaza carried out by Israel since last March.