Fatah Seizes Six-Story Gaza Baptist Church
By Michelle Vu
Christian Post Reporter
Tue, Feb. 06 2007 07:30 AM ET

A Gaza church was seized by the Palestinian Fatah group this weekend during one of the deadliest fighting in nearly two months.

Palestinian Authority police broke into the Gaza Baptist Church when church leaders refused to hand over the building key on Feb. 2, reported Open Doors. The police took positions on the sixth floor using the church as a watch point.

Church pastor Hanna Massad described the crisis as [i]“the worst situation[b]...

Fatah Seizes Six-Story Gaza Baptist Church
By Michelle Vu
Christian Post Reporter
Tue, Feb. 06 2007 07:30 AM ET

A Gaza church was seized by the Palestinian Fatah group this weekend during one of the deadliest fighting in nearly two months.

Palestinian Authority police broke into the Gaza Baptist Church when church leaders refused to hand over the building key on Feb. 2, reported Open Doors. The police took positions on the sixth floor using the church as a watch point.

Church pastor Hanna Massad described the crisis as “the worst situation we ever went through in Gaza.” Massad and congregants fear that if PA police fire at Hamas militants from the church top then Hamas militants will retaliate and the church building will be severely damaged.

...Christian Post Reporter

Middle East Christians: Gaza pastor
Wednesday, 21 December 2005,

Hanna Massad is the pastor of Gaza Baptist Church, one of only three churches serving the 2,000 Christians living among Gaza Strip's 1.3 million inhabitants.

He was born into a Greek Orthodox family in Gaza, but later started attending the Baptist church. After spending eight years studying in the US, he returned to become the church's first native Gazan pastor. As part of a BBC News Website series on Christians in the Middle East, he describes his life.


As Christians we cry for both sides, for our children - the Palestinians and also for the Jews....

Middle East Christians: Gaza pastor
Wednesday, 21 December 2005,

Hanna Massad is the pastor of Gaza Baptist Church, one of only three churches serving the 2,000 Christians living among Gaza Strip's 1.3 million inhabitants.

He was born into a Greek Orthodox family in Gaza, but later started attending the Baptist church. After spending eight years studying in the US, he returned to become the church's first native Gazan pastor. As part of a BBC News Website series on Christians in the Middle East, he describes his life.


As Christians we cry for both sides, for our children - the Palestinians and also for the Jews. In 1948 my family lost a lot of land inside Israel. We have official documents at home to prove it, but we are not able to do anything with them.

I think I have forgiven Israel - I'm not able to do it on my own, but by God's grace, because He has forgiven me, I am able to forgive others. Unfortunately, however, there are many Christians leaving. I think for many of them, if they have a chance to leave, they will leave.

This Christmas we feel a little more freedom because Israel has left the settlements and the border with Egypt has been opened.