October 12, 2023

A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts. www.catholicnewsagency.com - The Israeli Embassy to the US said on Wednesday that over 1,200 were killed and more than 3,000 injured as a result of a recent Hamas attack on Israel. Besides the killed and injured, the BBC reported that as many as 150 Israeli hostages were taken by Hamas, according to the Israeli government. The scale of the casualties and victims, which includes women, children, and the elderly, makes this one of the largest terrorist attacks since 9/11. The US has promised to send military equipment and supplies to support Israel. According to the IDF, the first shipment of US equipment landed in Israel’s Nevatim Air Force Base in southern Israel on Wednesday. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Israel to express American solidarity and support and to further assess the situation. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255656/update-over-1000-killed-including-22-americans-in-saturday-terrorist-attacks-on-israel The Latin Catholic patriarch of Jerusalem has called for a day of prayer and fasting on Tuesday, October 17, for peace and reconciliation in the Holy Land. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255660/catholic-patriarch-calls-day-of-prayer-and-fasting-for-peace-in-the-holy-land Caritas Jerusalem, which serves the needs of people in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and Jerusalem, reported that some of its staff are among those displaced. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255658/caritas-jerusalem-suspends-activities-in-gaza-and-israel-but-announces-emergency-plan A New York pro-life pregnancy center that was seriously damaged in an arson attack in June 2022 and was subsequently vandalized again with pro-abortion graffiti in March, has filed a federal lawsuit against two “known pro-abortion activists.” https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255650/firebombed-pro-life-pregnancy-center-fil