The Jewish party’s claim is represented by “none enters except one who is Jewish”. The Christian party’s claim is represented by “none enters except one who is Christian”.
The verse uses the collective verb qālū instead of separately repeating “the Jews said” and “the Christians said.” Their separate assertions are recovered from context and the following distinctions.
The rhetorical analysis does not establish the truth of the exclusive claims. It shows how the collective opening and the distinct subsequent predicates form a clear collective-to-particular arrangement.