The Holy Land Thread

[Del]

Cardinal McElroy and Archbishop Wester call for ‘immediate and total’ ceasefire in Gaza Strip

“The massacre of … innocent Israelis, including children, and the abhorrent victimization of women on Oct. 7 stands as a shocking attack by Hamas upon the most basic principles of human dignity,” Cardinal McElroy and Archbishop Wester said in their statement. “It absolutely delegitimates any future role for Hamas in the Middle East and underscores the right of Israel to bring to justice all those who carried out this outrage.”

“Moreover, the piercing moral claim of releasing the hostages should be a priority for the whole international community,” they said.

The siege of densely populated Gaza, which “has lasted more than one hundred days,” has claimed the lives of “more than one percent of the entire population of Gaza,” they said, adding that “proportionately for the United States, this would represent more than 3.5 million lives.”

Much of the remaining population has been rendered homeless, they said, since “the infrastructure, housing and commerce of Gaza has been systematically destroyed by Israeli attacks.”

“A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in Gaza before the eyes of the world,” the prelates said. “In such a conflict, continuing such warfare is neither just nor tolerable.”

The Cardinal and the Bishop get it. This must stop. And it will stop as soon as Hamas surrenders and returns the hostages, and Hamas leaders surrender themselves to trial and justice. If Hamas cares at all about the people they have ruled for the last 20 years, they will do this.

Hamas does not care about the suffering of Palestinians. They will not surrender. They insist that this must be done the hard way. And Gaza will not be habitable by Palestinians when this is finished.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: National Catholic Reporter / OSV News
Link: ncronline DOT org/news/jerusalem-church-official-gaza-situation-extremely-catastrophic

Jerusalem church official: Gaza situation 'extremely catastrophic'

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Jan 23, 2024 — The situation in the Gaza Strip is "extremely catastrophic," and people are dying not only from violence but from preventable illnesses, said the CEO of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

"People are really losing their life because of no treatment, no medical care," Sami El-Yousef, CEO, told OSV News Jan. 20. He repeatedly described the situation as "catastrophic" throughout the interview.

The supplies that are being allowed in are being transported from Egypt into southern Gaza Strip.

"There have been no supplies allowed into the northern part of Gaza," including Gaza City, where most Christians are sheltering in the Catholic and Orthodox parishes, El-Yousef said.

He said that during January, a black market has sprung up, and things such as medicine and blankets were being sold for 10 times the amount they sold for before Israel declared war on Hamas in retaliation for an Oct. 7 land and air attack launched by the militant Islamic group.

At the beginning of the war, a Gaza medical clinic run by the Catholic charitable agency Caritas transferred most of its medicine stock to Holy Family Catholic Parish, but all of those supplies are now depleted, El-Yousef said.

Of the approximately 800 Christians sheltering at the two parishes, seven have died "from medical neglect." One 35-year-old died when his appendix ruptured and he could not get to a hospital; the rest were elderly. At least five women over 80 have fallen and have injuries that prevent them from walking, he said. Five or six remain injured from a December sniper attack; their injuries do "not appear life-threatening … but they need treatment."

He spoke of one woman hit by shrapnel who was fortunate enough to have it removed — under anesthesia — at the Anglican hospital, but she had no pain medication for when the anesthesia wore off. The Washington Post reported Jan. 20 about one surgeon who had amputated his niece's leg on a kitchen table — without anesthetics. The story said many doctors are performing surgeries without anesthesia or pain relief.

"I would consider our people to be lucky, compared to what the general population" of the Gaza Strip is enduring, El-Yousef said of the small Christian community.

[…]

El-Yousef said before the current Israel–Hamas war, Israel was allowing about 600 truckloads of aid into the territory. Now, he said, about 200 truckloads are allowed in each day, and Israeli soldiers search each truck multiple times so that nothing can be smuggled in to help Hamas. He said the list of prohibited items is growing; for instance, incubators and oxygen machines are forbidden.

The World Health Organization said in mid-January that of the 36 hospitals operating in Gaza before the war, only 17 remain functioning.

The Associated Press reported that, under a deal mediated by France and Qatar, a shipment of medicine for dozens of Israeli hostages held by Hamas arrived in Gaza Jan. 17. As part of that deal, for each box for the hostages, 1,000 boxes of medicine would be sent for Palestinians.

El-Yousef said the local Christian community wanted to conduct clothing and blanket drives for the Gaza Christian community — when people fled to the church compounds in October, the weather was still warm — but Israel is not allowing goods into Gaza.

The patriarchate is able to send money to the Christian community. El-Yousef acknowledged that money now sent for food and medicine would be used to purchase supplies from the black market.

"It's very painful, but what are the choices? People either starve to death or you pay for what you can get," he said.

"Money is not an issue and will never be an issue to sustain the lives of these people in Gaza," he added.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: Crux
Link: cruxnow DOT com/church-in-the-middle-east/2024/01/holy-lands-top-catholic-urges-ceasefire-in-gaza-two-state-solution-for-middle-east

Holy Land’s top Catholic urges ceasefire in Gaza, two-state solution for Middle East

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NEW YORK — While conceding it’s not “realistic” to expect peace anytime soon, the top Catholic official in the Holy Land nevertheless has called for an immediate ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza and for real progress towards a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.

“It’s about time to go to the root of the problems in the Holy Land, not just find temporary solutions,” said Italian Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, on Jan. 27.

“No one, given the dramatic situation we are living, is ready to accept something temporary,” he said.

Pizzaballa, 58, made the comments to reporters during a recent visit to Chicago to meet local Arab Catholics. He said it’s “necessary now” for Israel and Hamas to agree to a ceasefire as the first step to an eventual two-state solution.

“We need to address the problems at their roots, and find a permanent solution — a two-state solution,” he said. “Israel, Palestine, with Jerusalem at the heart.”

“I know this seems to be very far from the reality, but it’s about time to talk seriously about this perspective, otherwise a temporary solution is only a pause between one war to another war, and this is what we don’t want anymore,” Pizzaballa said, who’s led the Catholic community in the Holy Land since 2020.

Pizzaballa acknowledged it’s not realistic to expect peace anytime soon.

“It is too early, and it is not realistic to talk about peace now. Peace is not just an agreement. It is the desire to live close to one another peacefully in a framework agreed upon by all,” Pizzaballa said. “We are not there yet.”

“We do not know when we arrive there, but the first thing to do is to stop the violence and then to start finding other ways to solve the problems,” he said.

During his visit to Chicago, Pizzaballa met the Arab Catholic community at Our Lady of the Ridge Church in Chicago Ridge. He celebrated a Mass Jan. 27, which was attended by more than 400 Arab Catholics, along with archdiocesan clergy and the Knights and Dames of the Holy Sepulchre.

Pizzaballa also met with the Our Lady of the Holy Land community, a parish group serving Arab Catholics. The community has gathered for more than a year with the Latin Patriarchate of the Holy Land, sending priests for short periods.

According to recent figures released by the Palestinian health ministry, the death toll from the Israel–Hamas war has surpassed 26,000, with more than 1.5 million people displaced. Those numbers, however, are disputed.

[…]

Pizzaballa did not respond to a Crux request for comment on the [Israeli allegations against a dozen UNRWA staff members] and the impact of [certain Western nations suspending aid to the agency].

In his remarks in Chicago, Pizzaballa called the overall situation in Gaza “very problematic and complex.” He said it is the duty of the international community to pressure the two sides to find a solution.

“Pressure from the international community is very important in order to help the two sides compromise more. Both sides know very well that they need to compromise, but apparently, as I understand, it is not enough,” Pizzaballa said.

“They need more pressure in order to arrive to a conclusion to stop this violence and to start looking to different perspectives,” he said.

Pizzaballa said he is in contact with Pope Francis “quite often,” and that the pontiff calls the lone Catholic parish in Gaza almost every day to “support them morally.”

He added that the Church has a role to play in the two sides finding a peaceful solution to end the war.

“We have to reconcile the differences among us, and also try to discreetly, but stubbornly, to work for dialogue between the parties,” Pizzaballa said. “We don’t necessarily need to be the mediator, but to help create conditions — the religious conditions, the social conditions — in order to help this.”

[Del]

"Pizzaballa, 58, made the comments to reporters during a recent visit to Chicago to meet local Arab Catholics. He said it’s “necessary now” for Israel and Hamas to agree to a ceasefire as the first step to an eventual two-state solution."

Hamas has enjoyed independent control and massive humanitarian aid for 20 years. They turned Gaza into terrorism base.

Is anyone pressuring Hamas to surrender, or at least to lay down arms? Hamas has refused every peace deal and return of hostages thus far.

Israel can't do this peace alone.

Hamas refused every offer of a "Two-State Solution" in recent decades. This was at the heart of the Abraham Accords, brokered by President Trump. $50 billion in aid from Arab states to Palestine and independence from Israel, in exchange for a peaceful lay-down of arms. Hamas refused to negotiate. This caused the Arab nations to see that Palestinian Muslims were not peace-minded neighbors -- but the Israelis were. The Arabs and Israelis thus turned their attention to facing their common adversary -- Iran.

Hamas is determined to live as terrorists and to die as terrorists. The tragic result is that Gaza will be rendered unlivable, and peace-minded Palestinians (basically, the Christian minority) will end up having to resettle elsewhere. Only there is a terrible prejudice against the Palestinians throughout the Arab world, as they are all regarded as savage terrorists and no one wants them.

Those Gazans who have Arab relatives already living peacefully and prosperously in Israel are perhaps the only ones who have a chance.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: National Catholic Reporter / CNS
Link: ncronline DOT org/vatican/vatican-news/pope-calls-global-cease-fire-says-humanity-brink-abyss

Pope calls for global cease-fire; says humanity is on brink of abyss

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Vatican City — Today's wars and conflicts have put humanity on the brink of the abyss, Pope Francis said, calling for a worldwide cease-fire.

"I will never tire of reiterating my call, addressed in particular to those who have political responsibility: stop the bombs and missiles now, end hostile stances" everywhere, the pope said in an interview with La Stampa, an Italian newspaper, published Jan. 29.

"A global cease-fire is urgent: either we do not realize it or we are pretending not to see that we are on the brink of the abyss," he said.

Asked specifically about the situation in Israel and Palestine, the pope said that the Oslo Accord is "very clear with the two-state solution. Until that agreement is implemented, real peace remains distant."

The pope said the thing he fears most is a "military escalation" in which the conflict might "further worsen the tensions and violence that already mark the planet."

However, he said he is also hopeful because "confidential meetings are taking place to try to reach an agreement. A truce would already be a good result."

A key figure in the Vatican's efforts concerning the Middle East, he said, is Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem. "He is trying with determination to mediate."

"The Christians and the people of Gaza — I don't mean Hamas — have a right to peace," the pope said.

He said he connects daily on the video platform Zoom with the Holy Family Catholic Parish in Gaza to speak to them. Some 600 people sheltering in the parish compound are "living their lives looking death in the face every day."

The other priority remains the release of the Israeli hostages, he added.

[…]

Asked if there were such a thing as "just war," the pope said it is better to use the term "legitimate defense."

"If thieves come into your house to rob you and attack you, you defend yourself. But I don't like to call this reaction a 'just war' reaction, because it is a definition that can be exploited," he said.

"It is right and legitimate to defend yourself," he said, so it is better to discuss situations of legitimate defense, "so we can avoid justifying wars, which are always wrong."

World peace must be built on dialogue and the pursuit of human solidarity and fraternity, he said. "We can no longer kill each other, between brothers and sisters! It makes no sense!"

The pope also called for peace after praying the Angelus with visitors in St. Peter's Square Jan. 28.

He highlighted the current conflict in Myanmar, joining the call of some Burmese bishops for turning weapons of destruction "into instruments for the growth of humanity and justice" and for allowing humanitarian aid to reach everyone in need.

"Peace is a journey, and I invite all parties involved to take steps in dialogue and to clothe themselves in understanding so that the land of Myanmar may reach the goal of fraternal reconciliation," the pope said.

"The same must happen in the Middle East, in Palestine and Israel, and wherever there is conflict: the populations must be respected!" he said.

Thinking of all victims of war, especially civilians, the pope said, "Please, listen to their cry for peace: it is the cry of the people, who are tired of violence and want the war to stop. It is a disaster for the people and a defeat for humanity!"

The pope also thanked the boys and girls of Catholic Action, parishes and Catholic schools in Rome who came to Rome for the annual "Caravan of Peace," organized by Catholic Action.

"Thank you for your presence! And thank you for your commitment to building a better society," he said.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: America
Link: americamagazine DOT org/faith/2024/02/03/pope-francis-letter-israeli-jewish-antisemitism-247107

A letter from Pope Francis to his ‘Jewish brothers and sisters in Israel’ [Full Text]

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Editor’s Note: This letter was sent by Pope Francis on Feb. 2 to Karma Ben Johanan, who teaches at the department of comparative religion at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Dr. Ben Johanan was the coordinator of the open letter to the pope from more than 400 Jewish rabbis and scholars last November. In January, she wrote an article for America titled, “There is a right and wrong way for Catholics to criticize Israel.” In his letter, Pope Francis invites everyone to work for peace in the Holy Land.

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Feb 3, 2023 — Dear brothers and sisters,

We are experiencing a moment of great travail. Wars and divisions are increasing all over the world. We are truly, as I said some time ago, in the midst of a sort of “piecemeal world war,” with serious consequences on the lives of many populations.

Unfortunately, even the Holy Land has not been spared this pain, and since October 7 it too has been cast into a spiral of unprecedented violence. My heart is torn at the sight of what is happening in the Holy Land, by the power of so much division and so much hatred.

The whole world looks on at what is happening in that land with apprehension and pain. These are feelings that express special closeness and affection for the peoples who inhabit the land which has witnessed the history of revelation.

Unfortunately, however, it must be noted that this war has also produced divisive attitudes in public opinion worldwide and divisive positions, sometimes taking the form of anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism. I can only reiterate what my predecessors have also clearly stated many times: the relationship that binds us to you is particular and singular, without ever obscuring, naturally, the relationship that the Church has with others and the commitment towards them too. The path that the Church has walked with you, the ancient people of the covenant, rejects every form of anti-Judaism and anti-Semitism, unequivocally condemning manifestations of hatred towards Jews and Judaism as a sin against God. Together with you, we, Catholics, are very concerned about the terrible increase in attacks against Jews around the world. We had hoped that “never again” would be a refrain heard by the new generations, yet now we see that the path ahead requires ever-closer collaboration to eradicate these phenomena.

My heart is close to you, to the Holy Land, to all the peoples who inhabit it, Israelis and Palestinians, and I pray that the desire for peace may prevail in all. I want you to know that you are close to my heart and to the heart of the Church. In the light of the numerous communications that have been sent to me by various friends and Jewish organizations from all over the world and in the light of your own letter, which I greatly appreciate, I feel the desire to assure you of my closeness and affection. I embrace each of you, and especially those who are consumed by anguish, pain, fear and even anger. Words are so difficult to formulate in the face of a tragedy like the one that has occurred in recent months. Together with you, we mourn the dead, the wounded, the traumatized, begging God the Father to intervene and put an end to war and hatred, to these incessant cycles that endanger the entire world. In a special way we pray for the return of the hostages, rejoicing because of those who have already returned home, and praying that all the others will soon join them.

I would also like to add that we must never lose hope for a possible peace and that we must do everything possible to promote it, rejecting every form of defeatism and mistrust. We must look to God, the only source of certain hope. As I said ten years ago: “History teaches that our own powers do not suffice. More than once we have been on the verge of peace, but the evil one, employing a variety of means, has succeeded in blocking it. That is why we are here, because we know and we believe that we need the help of God. We do not renounce our responsibilities, but we do call upon God in an act of supreme responsibility before our consciences and before our peoples. We have heard a summons, and we must respond. It is the summons to break the spiral of hatred and violence, and so break it by one word alone: the word ‘brother.’ But to be able to utter this word we have to lift our eyes to heaven and acknowledge one another as children of one Father” (Vatican Garden, June 8, 2014).

In times of desolation, we have great difficulty seeing a future horizon where light replaces darkness, in which friendship replaces hatred, in which cooperation replaces war. However, we, as Jews and Catholics, are witnesses to precisely such a horizon. And we must act, starting first and foremost from the Holy Land, where together we want to work for peace and justice, doing everything possible to create relationships capable of opening new horizons of light for everyone, Israelis and Palestinians.

Together, Jews and Catholics, we must commit ourselves to this path of friendship, solidarity and cooperation in seeking ways to repair a destroyed world, working together in every part of the world, and especially in the Holy Land, to recover the ability to see in the face of every person the image of God, in which we were created.

We still have a lot to do together to ensure that the world we leave to those who come after us is a better one but I am sure that we will be able to continue to work together towards this goal. I embrace you fraternally, Francis.

[Del]

+JMJ+

Source: America
Link: americamagazine DOT org/faith/2024/02/03/pope-francis-letter-israeli-jewish-antisemitism-247107

A letter from Pope Francis to his ‘Jewish brothers and sisters in Israel’ [Full Text]

I congratulate Papa Francis for speaking one clear message, undiluted with some form of Jesuit double-speak. Nothing like his usual, "On the other hand, evil can be welcomed too."

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: National Catholic Reporter / OSV News
Link: ncronline DOT org/news/leader-catholic-relief-services-urges-cease-fire-israel-hamas-war

Leader of Catholic Relief Services urges cease-fire in Israel–Hamas war

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Jan 31, 2024 — As the Israel–Hamas war enters its fourth month, ending hostilities "all around" to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip has become critical, the head of a U.S.-based Catholic aid agency told OSV News.

"We need a stopping of the violence," said Sean Callahan, president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services. "Stop the bombing and the violence and let's allow humanitarian actors to get in there and get the appropriate supplies (to people in Gaza)."

CRS, the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States, provides a range of assistance programs in more than 100 nations, and is now working to alleviate suffering caused by the Israel–Hamas war.

[…]

The ensuing humanitarian crisis has left the Middle East "on the verge of the abyss," according to United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.

Callahan, who traveled to Gaza, Jerusalem, the West Bank, Jordan and Egypt Jan. 16–26, spoke with OSV News to share his thoughts on addressing that humanitarian crisis.

He said the first step for CRS was "(visiting) with partners, people on the ground and our colleagues, just to make sure that we were understanding the situation on the ground adequately."

In addition, he sought to "make sure our partners and our team on the ground knew we were thinking of them … and that we would use all the resources of the agency to support them."

Currently, CRS has 45 staff members in Gaza, down from 52, said Callahan. Two international members had departed and four have left for Egypt due to family reasons — including the birth of a child to a CRS worker who is eager to return to her mission, he added.

One female CRS staffer, a Gaza native and mother of two young children, remains injured within the Holy Family Catholic Church complex in Gaza City, having been wounded during a Dec. 16, 2023, attack on the compound that killed an elderly woman and her daughter, he said.

"When the Israeli (forces) killed two of the women in the compound, she went to help them and then they threw a device in there, which ended up exploding, and it shattered her legs," Callahan said. "She's had some surgery, but they haven't got all the shrapnel out and they haven't mended it."

His agency's attempts to move the woman out of the country for treatment have so far been unsuccessful, he said.

CRS' Gaza offices have had to relocate from their original Gaza City site — since the team "can't get back into Gaza [City], and the building's windows have been blown out" — to space over an unused grocery store in Rafah, using solar panels to maintain electrical power and internet connections for their work, said Callahan, noting that some colleagues are "living in tents … with their combined families."

Along with food and water distribution, creating shelter for those in Gaza is "key" amid the "devastating situation," especially as rain and falling temperatures have compounded the misery of those displaced by the hostilities, said Callahan.

[…]

Sanitation conditions also have worsened, he said, with people "digging latrines … kind of randomly, (since) the infrastructure in many areas has been bombed."

Callahan said that some medical groups with whom he spoke advised him of "100% diarrhea and dysentery" among those they are seeing.

[…]

Relief efforts have also been complicated by emerging intelligence data showing that at least 12 staff members of UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, were connected to Hamas' Oct. 7 attack. An estimated 10% of UNRWA's Gaza staff has ties to militant Islamist groups, and about half have close relatives belonging to the groups, according to reports reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Following the revelations, a number of nations — including major donors such as the U.S., Germany, and the European Union — have suspended millions of dollars in UNRWA funding.

Callahan said that CRS, as a matter of policy and in compliance with U.S. government regulations, does not partner with either UNRWA or the Hamas government in Gaza.

"Our vendors have all been reviewed and approved through U.S. government programs," he said. "So we're making sure that we maintain credibility, and that there isn't any doubt of where our aid goes, who gets it and who doesn't."

[…]

Even in the face of violence and destruction, Callahan said, "almost everybody" he encountered during his visit "had some hope about the future.

"They were very hopeful that this was going to end," he said. "And I think the most poignant thing was in talking to a few women in our office, who said, 'We just want peace; we want peace for our families.' They weren't harboring revenge or hostility against people. These were people that have gotten trapped in a war … they were just asking for peace for their families."

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: Crux
Link: cruxnow DOT com/church-in-the-usa/2024/02/u-s-catholic-leaders-call-for-peace-and-accountability-between-israel-and-hamas

U.S. Catholic leaders call for ‘peace and accountability’ between Israel and Hamas

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NEW YORK — With Israel and Hamas still unable to reach a deal to free hostages and halt their war, Catholic leaders in the northwest United States are calling for an agreement between the sides, as well as for them to negotiate a two-state solution for lasting peace.

In a joint statement, Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Seattle, Bishop Joseph Tyson of Yakima, Bishop Jeffrey Fleming of Great Falls–Billings, Seattle’s auxiliary bishops, and seven women’s religious communities, said they “deplore” the actions by both Israel and Hamas, beginning with Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.

[…]

“As Catholics, we pray for a peaceful end to the war in Israel and Gaza, which is destroying innocent lives and devastating families, and invite all people of faith to pray and advocate for a peaceful resolution,” the leaders said in a Feb. 14 statement.

“We call for a humanitarian ceasefire, knowing that the continued fighting will not resolve the root causes of this relentless cycle of violence, but instead, sow the seed of intergenerational hatred and animosity,” they continued. “We also fervently pray for the immediate release of all hostages and for everyone who is suffering due to the inhumanities and violence inflicted by this war.”

The Catholic leaders went on to say that they are concerned about the widening of the conflict. Specifically, the involvement of additional nations from the Middle East and West. They also highlighted the rise of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia throughout the world, “which exacerbates the sin of racism and ignores the dignity of the human person.”

What’s needed now, they said, is peace and accountability.

“Peace is needed now. Accountability rather than retribution is needed now,” the statement said. “Language that speaks of peace and reconciliation without words of violence and vengeance is needed now.”

Beyond the immediate need for ceasefire and freeing of hostages, the Catholics leaders also emphasized the importance of the sides reaching an agreement on a two-state solution that will provide lasting peace for the region. They advocate for the international community to support these efforts, and to make sure those who perpetrated war crimes from both sides are held accountable.

“We urge a return to negotiating a two-state solution and call on the international community to re-engage in active and sustained support for a just and lasting peace,” they said. “We also urge the United Nations and relevant authorities to investigate all war crimes and violations of international humanitarian law committed on Oct. 7, 2023, and beyond, as well as those committed in retaliation in the ensuing months, so that truth prevails, and accountability is ensured.”

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Source: Crux
Link: cruxnow DOT com/church-in-europe/2024/02/top-papal-aide-backs-global-appeal-for-ceasefire-in-gaza

Top papal aide backs global appeal for ceasefire in Gaza

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ROME — A top Italian prelate and close papal aide has condemned the rise of antisemitism since the outbreak of the current war in Gaza, but has called for a ceasefire, saying Israel’s military offensive does not justify the rising civilian death count.

Speaking Feb. 18 on Italian television program In Mezz’ora shown on state broadcaster RAI, Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi lamented the many violent conflicts raging throughout the world, saying, “We must always try to see peace, war is always a terrible defeat.”

“Every day more is a day of anguish. Peace is something that requires a lot of experiments, many attempts, it must be sought with obstinacy, and we are convinced that it will come,” he said, saying the international community has a role to play, and “cannot keep itself out.”

In terms of the ongoing war in Gaza, Zuppi issued a “strong and clear condemnation” of antisemitism and of the Oct. 7, 2023 surprise attack by Hamas that left some 1,200 Israelis dead and over 200 more taken as hostages.

Zuppi called the Hamas attack “a terrible violence which killed innocents” and an “expression of something that we cannot accept.”

However, he also backed recent remarks from the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who acknowledged Israel’s right to self-defense, but said their military response to the Hamas attack has been disproportionate.

[…]

“We hope that this appeal will be accepted by Israel, and we will begin to look to the future,” he said.

Zuppi, who serves as the archbishop of Bologna and president of the powerful Italian Bishops’ Conference, is also Pope Francis’s personal peace envoy for the war in Ukraine, and last year traveled to Kyiv, Moscow, Washington D.C. and Beijing in that capacity.

His efforts in the Ukraine war have so far focused primarily on the humanitarian situation and on negotiating the return of Ukrainian children forcibly deported to Russia.

In his remarks on RAI, Zuppi said collaboration with both Russia and Ukraine on the humanitarian front continues, and that “the two nuncios, in Moscow and Kyiv, are always in contact and help the contact between the parties so that family reunifications can be started, they have already begun.”

Zuppi also spoke about issues of national interest, including rising poverty rates in Italy and consistent animus over the issue of migration.

“We have a situation that cannot fail to worry us, which we cannot fail to realize … there are millions of people who live below the poverty line,” and who rely on some form of aid, he said.

He noted that the Italian bishops and the government have “different assessments and concerns” on the migration issue, and said the Church “can and must be present” to all people involved.

“The only side the Church takes is that of the person,” he said, saying, “the important, continuous, and constructive dialogue with all governments and also with the current government continues.”

[…]