DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight and into Sunday killed at least 22 people, including five children, Palestinian medical officials said, while Gaza's small Christian community celebrated a pre-Christmas Mass.

Israeli authorities allowed a rare Gaza visit by the leader of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, for the Mass while the ever-present buzz of Israeli drones was heard outside.

One of the latest Israeli strikes hit a school housing displaced people in Gaza City and killed at least eight, including three children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Israel's military said it struck Hamas militants sheltering there.

A strike on a home in the central city of Deir al-Balah late Saturday killed at least eight, including three women and two children, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Israel's military said it struck an Islamic Jihad militant. Another six people were killed in separate strikes on Sunday, according to local hospitals.

“The children are still inside the house. We are looking for them. They were sleeping in the living room, five of them together,” said a relative, Noman Abu Samra, as people searched rubble in Deir al-Balah. A window full of children watched.

Israel has carried out daily strikes in Gaza more than 14 months into the war with Hamas. It says it only targets militants, accusing them of hiding among civilians, but the bombings frequently kill women and children.

Israel and Hamas recently appeared to draw closer to a ceasefire agreement that would include the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, but several obstacles remain.

Vatican envoy celebrates Mass with Gaza's Christians

Dozens of worshipers gathered in the Holy Family Church in Gaza City as Pizzaballa and other clergy celebrated Mass. A twinkling Christmas tree was decorated with golden ornaments.

“I want to say, to tell you, that all the world, not only the Christian world, all the world is with you, So the war will finish and we will rebuild,” the cardinal said, urging Gazans to never be afraid.

His visit came as Pope Francis again criticized Israel's actions in Gaza. Francis said Saturday his envoy had been unable to enter because of Israeli bombing.

“Yesterday children have been bombed. This is cruelty, this is not war,” Francis said during his annual Christmas greetings. On Sunday, he called for a ceasefire.

The pope recently called for an investigation to determine if Israel's actions in Gaza constitute genocide, a conclusion reached by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The International Court of Justice is investigating genocide allegations brought against Israel by South Africa.

Israel, which was founded as a refuge for Jews after the Nazi Holocaust, rejects such allegations. It says it is only at war with Hamas, which ignited the conflict.

Now winter sets in

In an Oct. 7, 2023, attack, Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel and killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. Around 100 hostages are still in Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead.

Israel’s subsequent bombardment and ground invasion have killed over 45,000 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its count.

The offensive has caused widespread destruction and displaced some 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people, often multiple times. Hundreds of thousands are packed into squalid tent camps along the coast as the cold, wet winter sets in.

Israel has been carrying out a major operation in northern Gaza since October, battling Hamas in the most isolated and heavily damaged part of the territory. Tens of thousands have fled as the military has ordered a complete evacuation and allowed almost no humanitarian aid to enter.

The Israeli military body overseeing civilian affairs in Gaza, known as COGAT, said on Friday it facilitated the evacuation of over 100 patients, caregivers and others from Kamal Adwan Hospital and Al-Awda Hospital in the north. They have struggled to function.

Kamal Adwan's director on Saturday asserted that Israel's military had ordered an evacuation and said shelling was occurring. Israel's military on Sunday said there was no evacuation order and it was unaware of any strikes there.

Palestinian security force member killed in West Bank

In the volatile West Bank town of Jenin, militants shot and killed a member of the Palestinian security forces and wounded two others. The Western-backed Palestinian Authority launched a rare crackdown there this month.

A statement from the security forces blamed the shooting on “outlaws,” without elaborating. The PA is internationally recognized but deeply unpopular among Palestinians, in part because it cooperates with Israel on security matters.

The PA exercises limited authority in population centers in the West Bank. Israel captured the territory in the 1967 Mideast War, and the Palestinians want it to form the main part of their future state.

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Goldenberg reported from Tel Aviv, Israel.

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