Islamabad, Dec 22: On Saturday, Pope Francis once again criticized Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, following comments made by an Israeli government minister the previous day.
The minister had rebuked the pontiff for suggesting that the international community should evaluate whether Israel’s military actions in Gaza amount to genocide against Palestinians.
During his annual Christmas address to Catholic cardinals overseeing Vatican departments, the pope seemingly referred to Israeli airstrikes that killed at least 25 Palestinians on Friday. “Yesterday, children were bombed,” he remarked. “This is cruelty.
This is not war. I wanted to say this because it touches the heart.”
As the leader of the 1.4-billion-member Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis is usually cautious in addressing conflicts.
However, he has recently been more vocal regarding Israel’s military operations against Hamas in Gaza.
In excerpts from a book published last month, the pope cited international experts who have argued that events in Gaza exhibit characteristics of genocide.
Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli responded with strong criticism, publishing an open letter in the Italian newspaper Il Foglio. Chikli accused the pope of trivializing the term genocide with his remarks.
On the same day, Pope Francis stated that the Catholic bishop of Jerusalem, referred to as the patriarch, had attempted to visit Catholics in Gaza but was denied entry.
The patriarch’s office declined to comment on these remarks. However, the Israeli military clarified on Saturday that the patriarch had been approved to enter Gaza and would do so on Sunday, provided there were no major security concerns.
The military also noted that aid from the patriarch’s office had entered Gaza the previous week.
In a statement, the Israeli military said it facilitates clerical entry into Gaza and works with the Christian community to support the Christian population in the area, including coordinating their relocation to third countries if needed.
