Amid heavy Israeli bombardment, displacement and devastation, there had been one near-daily glimmer of hope in the Holy Family parish in Gaza City: an evening phone call from Rome. It was none other than Pope Francis, checking in on his small flock of Palestinian Christians sheltering in the church compound.

"Pope Francis stayed in constant contact. He made every effort to reach each of us by phone," George Anton, who is sheltering with his family in the compound, told DW. "From the very beginning of the war until the day before his death, he remained a daily presence in our lives. He never forgot us." 

"He called us daily, even on the darkest days, under bombardment, when people were being killed and wounded around us," said Gabriel Romanelli, the Argentine priest who serves the Holy Family parish. "The communication was constant, day and night. Sometimes, because of the difficult situation in Gaza, it would take three or four hours of trying before the call finally got through. But he never gave up until he reached us."

The last time they spoke was on Saturday, Romanelli said: "He asked for our prayers, gave us his blessing, and thanked us for our commitment to peace."

There had been a constant number of around 1,200 Palestinian Christians in Gaza, but their numbers have dwindled in recent years in the closed-off Gaza Strip. Since the war began, most of them have moved to Gaza's two churches in the hopes of finding more safety there. Currently, about 500 displaced people are sheltering in the Holy Family church compound. The community also takes care of people with special needs. 

In late October 2023, after the Hamas-led terror attacks on southern Israel that killed some 1,200 people, one of the many retaliatory Israeli airstrikes hit the compound of the Greek-Orthodox Saint Porphyrius church, which also lies in Gaza City. Eighteen people who had sought shelter there were killed.

In all, the war has claimed more than 51,000 lives in Gaza, according to the enclave's Health Ministry. While the numbers cannot be independently verified, the UN has cited these figures as reliable. 

Humanitarian crisis in Gaza

When Israel once again blocked off all aid to Gaza in violation of the ceasefire agreement and renewed its offensive on March 18, the humanitarian crisis reached unprecedented levels, the United Nations reported.

For Pope Francis, the dire humanitarian situation was of great concern. Throughout the war, he had frequently condemned Israel's disproportionate use of force against civilians.

He also said scholars would have to decide whether what was happening in Gaza constituted genocide under international law.

"According to some experts," Francis wrote in November 2024, "what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide. It should be carefully investigated to determine whether it fits into the technical definition formulated by jurists and international bodies."

'We will miss Pope Francis very much'

In Gaza, it was the human connection that made "Baba Francis," as he is known in Arabic, so special. For many, he was the only constant, if virtual, link to the outside world. This gave the community tremendous support, said George Anton, as many here feel the world has forgotten them.

"We will miss Pope Francis very much. We will miss his personal love for each of us," Anton added. "We will miss his fatherly concern, always asking about our lives and offering us compassion and strength, easing our fears. His presence, even from afar, brought us comfort."

Suhail Abu Daoud, 19, said he felt the pope genuinely cared about people and the situation in Gaza.

"He was one of the most vocal advocates for the poor and marginalized," Abu Daoud told DW. "He consistently opposed war and called for peace and a ceasefire in Gaza and around the world." 

Pope's final words 'a message of peace'

Pope Francis traveled to the Middle East several times during his papacy, speaking to the often difficult situation of Christian minorities and building interfaith bridges. Under his leadership, the Vatican recognized Palestinian statehood in 2015. Since the start of the 2023 war, he was an outspoken critic of the conflict.

He also called on Hamas to release all of the 251 hostages taken on October 7, 2023, in Israel, and met some of their families in Rome. His criticism of the war was not always well-received in Israel. Following the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, as messages of grief and sympathy poured in from around the world, only Israel's president, Isaac Herzog, sent condolences for his country. The Israeli Foreign Ministry deleted a social media post expressing sorrow over the pope's passing.

In Pope Francis' final address on Easter Sunday, read by one of his aides, he urged Israel and Hamas to "call a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace."

In Gaza, this message, one day before his death, left a deep impression.

"He was delivering a message of peace and calling for a complete ceasefire in Gaza," said Suhail Abu Daoud. "His final words were about Gaza, a place that held a unique and special place in his heart."

Edited by: Maren Sass