Since the start of the genocide on October 7, 2023, Israel has targeted Muslim preachers, mosque imams, and religious figures, along with Christians and their churches, in what a Gaza government official described as a “systematic policy aimed at dismantling the spiritual infrastructure and moral authority of Palestinian society” in the Strip.
اضافة اعلان
Ismail Al-Thawabta, head of Gaza’s Government Media Office, told Anadolu that the religious scholars targeted represent “fundamental pillars in instilling national and religious values, reinforcing resilience against aggression and genocide, and strengthening social cohesion.”
The genocide has resulted in the killing of 233 Muslim preachers, imams, and scholars, and 20 Christians in Israeli attacks across Gaza, according to Al-Thawabta.
He explained that these systematic killings are intended to “weaken the morale of Palestinian society and silence religious and national discourse that exposes the crimes of the occupation.”
He added that Israel seeks to “empty the Palestinian scene of its influential figures, capable of mobilizing the people and preserving religious and national identity, while creating a spiritual and cultural vacuum that paves the way for imposing its narrative and colonial schemes.”
Notable Scholars Targeted Since October 7, 2023:
Sheikh Yousef Salama:
One of Palestine’s prominent religious scholars, who began as a teacher and imam, later held senior roles at the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs in Gaza, becoming its minister in 2005–2006.
He was among the preachers of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem for 10 years (1997–2007), and served as deputy head of the Higher Islamic Council in Jerusalem.
He was killed in an Israeli airstrike on his home in Al-Maghazi camp, central Gaza, on December 31, 2023.
Sheikh Wael Al-Zard:
Known as imam of the Great Omari Mosque in Gaza City and Al-Mahatta Mosque in Al-Daraj neighborhood, famous for his “jihadist” sermons.
He was also a university professor at the University College of Applied Sciences, and earlier taught at Al-Quds Open University and the Islamic University of Gaza.
He earned a master’s degree in Hadith studies in 2001, and later a PhD from Ain Shams University in Egypt.
His home was bombed on October 13, 2023, and he died two days later from his injuries.
Sheikh Walid Owaida:
Member of the Palestinian branch of the International Union of Muslim Scholars, and Director General of Quran Memorization at Gaza’s Ministry of Endowments.
He held a PhD in Hadith and its sciences, leaving a “remarkable contribution in spreading Islamic knowledge and guiding generations toward Islamic values.”
He was killed in an Israeli strike on his home in Al-Sabra, southern Gaza City, on November 12, 2024.
Sheikh Nael Misran:
Known for his sermons urging Palestinians to remain steadfast throughout 600 days of genocide, until he and his family were killed when an Israeli strike hit his tent in Khan Younis on May 30, 2024.
He held a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, then studied Islamic law, later earning a PhD in the principles of jurisprudence.
Targeting Mosques
Alongside killing religious scholars, Israeli attacks have completely destroyed 828 mosques since the start of the genocide, and 167 more were severely damaged and require reconstruction, according to Gaza’s Government Media Office.
Targeting Christians
Israel has also targeted Christian places of worship and religious leaders. Major churches in Gaza City, which had been sheltering displaced civilians, were bombed, resulting in deaths, injuries, and major damage.
According to Al-Thawabta, Israel directly targeted three main churches during the war, some more than once, causing severe destruction to their historic structures and facilities.
The churches hit include:
St. Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church
Holy Family Catholic Church (Latin)
Evangelical Baptist Church in Gaza
Israeli attacks on Christian areas also killed more than 20 Palestinian Christians, including women, children, and elderly.
For example:
On July 17, 2024, Israeli forces bombed the Holy Family Church in eastern Gaza City, killing 3 people, including two Christians: Saad Salama (about 60) and Foumia Ayad (about 80), and injuring 9 others, among them parish priest Gabriel Romanelli, according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The church had been sheltering around 400 displaced Christians.
On October 19, 2023, just days after the war began, Israel bombed St. Porphyrius Church, killing 20 people, including 18 Christians, according to Gaza’s Government Media Office.
Nearby, the Al-Ahli Arab (Baptist) Hospital, affiliated with the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem, was bombed multiple times, most notably on October 17, 2023, killing and injuring hundreds of Palestinians.
Al-Thawabta stressed that Israel’s attacks on Gaza’s small Christian community, including priests and churches, are part of a systematic policy aimed at erasing religious diversity and the historic Christian presence in the Strip.
He noted that Christian casualties now exceed 3% of Gaza’s total Christian population, including clergy and church staff, calling it a “grave violation of international humanitarian law protections for religious figures and places of worship — amounting to war crimes and religious persecution under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.”
He added that the blockade and deliberate starvation policies have deepened Christians’ suffering by depriving them of aid and basic necessities.
“These practices are not merely field violations,” he said, “but an assault on the history and shared identity of the Palestinian people — amounting to ethnic cleansing that requires international accountability.”
Many displaced Christians have taken refuge in churches and their facilities after losing their homes in Israeli bombings, seeking what they hoped would be safer shelters.
Backed by the U.S., Israel has been carrying out genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, involving mass killings, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, ignoring all international calls and International Court of Justice orders to stop.
The genocide has so far killed 62,744 Palestinians, wounded 158,259, left over 9,000 missing, displaced hundreds of thousands, and caused famine that killed 300, including 117 children.
