Pope Francis affirmed this Wednesday that what is happening in Israel and Palestine “is not a war, but terrorism”, after having received families of Israeli hostages detained by Hamas and Palestinian prisoners.
“Let us not forget to pray for those who suffer because of wars in so many parts of the world, especially for the dear people of Ukraine, Israel and Palestine,” the Pope asked at the end of a general audience held in St. Peter’s. Square .
The Pope said he received “two delegations, one from Israelis who have family members held hostage in Gaza and the other from Palestinians who have family members imprisoned in Israel.”
“They suffer a lot and I have heard how they suffer. Wars do that, but here we have gone beyond wars. This is not a war, it is terrorism,” he stressed.
“Pray a lot for peace. May the Lord help us solve the problems and not continue with the passions that in the end kill everyone. Pray for the people of Israel so that peace may come,” he said.
The meeting with the Pope took place after the Israeli Government accepted the agreement with Hamas for the release of 50 people kidnapped in the Gaza Strip, in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners and a four-day truce.
Qatar said today that the start of the four-day truce between Israel and the Islamist movement Hamas, which provides for the release of hostages in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners, will be announced in the next 24 hours.
Tel Aviv declared war on Hamas after the Islamist group launched an attack on Israel on October 7, in which more than 1,200 people were killed and 240 were kidnapped and taken to Gaza.
Source: TSF
