Pope León XIV on Sunday highlighted the progress made in ending Israel's aggression against the Gaza Strip, which has already caused the deaths of more than 66,000 Palestinians.
After the Sunday Angelus prayer, the Supreme Pontiff acknowledged that "in these last few hours, amid the dramatic situation in the Middle East, significant progress has been made in the peace negotiations, which I hope will soon achieve the desired results," according to a statement released by the Holy See press office.
“I ask all leaders to commit to following this path, to cease fire and release the hostages, while urging them to remain united in prayer, so that the ongoing efforts will end the war and lead us toward a just and lasting peace,” the Bishop of Rome added.
This new exhortation from the Holy Father to finally reach an agreement to cease Tel Aviv's attacks against the Palestinian people came just hours after the Vatican News published a message from Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, on the importance of the upcoming negotiations.
Pizzaballa stated in the text that Gaza continues to face "ongoing massacres of civilians, hunger, repeated displacement, difficulty accessing hospitals and medical care, poor hygiene, not to mention people being held against their will."
However, he notes, "for the first time, the news is finally talking about a possible new chapter in the history of the conflict: the release of Israeli hostages, some Palestinian prisoners, and the cessation of bombing and the military offensive."
This is "an important and long-awaited first step," but "nothing is yet completely clear and definitive, as many questions remain unanswered, much remains to be defined, and we must not deceive ourselves," the Patriarch notes.
“The possible end of this horrible war, which now seems truly near, could finally mark a new beginning for everyone, not just for Israelis and Palestinians, but for the entire world.”
“However, we must keep our feet on the ground. Much remains to be determined to give Gaza a peaceful future,” the religious leader clarified. He stated, “The cessation of hostilities is only the first, necessary and indispensable step on a treacherous path, in a context that nonetheless remains problematic.”
He referred in his reflections to the fact that "the images are devastating," and alluded to the situation in the Cisjordania, where Palestinian communities face daily problems, especially small villages, "increasingly surrounded and suffocated by settler attacks, without sufficient defense from the security authorities."
“The lack of clarity about the future, yet to be defined, contributes to a sense of disorientation and increases distrust,” while “anger, resentment, distrust, hatred, and contempt too often dominate our conversations and contaminate our hearts,” Pizzaballa added.
With information from Prensa Latina
