The association removed a building in danger of collapse that was adjacent to Saint Porphyrius Church.

On Wednesday, 16 September 2026, SAFE completed the removal of a building at risk of collapse inside the compound of Saint Porphyrios Greek Orthodox Church in the Old City of Gaza, next to the Katib al-Wilaya Mosque, in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme/Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People (UNDP/PAPP). The works came in response to an appeal over the danger of the building collapsing. As UNDP’s implementing partner, SAFE led the intervention from requesting the structural assessment of the building through to the completion of the removal works.

The works were preceded by a structural assessment carried out by a specialised engineering consultant at SAFE’s request and commissioned by UNDP, under the Structural Assessment and Demolition Planning for Damaged Buildings in the Gaza Strip project, which SAFE implements in partnership with UNDP. The field inspection on 27 August 2026 found the building almost completely destroyed. The consultant recommended its full removal, given the severity of the damage and the age of the structure, and prepared a removal and shoring plan that took account of the building’s position against the historic church.

SAFE carried out the works in line with this plan, which estimated the debris at about 600 tonnes, comprising 100 tonnes of rubble accumulated around the building and 500 tonnes from its structural and non-structural elements, to be stockpiled temporarily in the building’s yard next to the street and then hauled to approved dumpsites. The plan also set out safety measures, including cordoning off the site with a protective fence and warning signs to stop movement around it, and providing workers with personal protective equipment.

With the works completed 20 days after the field inspection, the risk of the building collapsing inside the church compound has been removed.

His Eminence Archbishop Alexios of Tiberias, Patriarchal Commissioner in Gaza, and the Very Reverend Archimandrite Silas, parish priest of the church, thanked UNDP and SAFE for their efforts in supervising and carrying out the debris removal works.