Israel said Thursday that it “deeply regrets” a deadly strike on Gaza’s only Catholic church, which killed three people.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said his country "deeply regrets that a stray ammunition" hit Gaza's only Catholic Church, killing three people sheltering there. "Every innocent life lost is a tragedy. We share the grief of the families and the faithful," he said in a statement.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa entered Gaza on Friday to bring aid to victims of Israel's strike on the sole Catholic church in the Palestinian enclave, while he and a Vatican official questioned Israeli explanations for the incident.