Pope Francis has called for the free flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and the release of hostages. The Pope made the announcement on 22 October after his Sunday homily in St Peter's Square at the Vatican.
"I pray and feel close to everyone who is suffering, to the hostages, to the injured, to the relatives of the victims. I renew my call for the opening of the premises, the continued flow of humanitarian aid and the release of the hostages," Vatican News quoted him as saying.
The Pope also called for an end to the conflict, saying that war is always a defeat and a destruction of human brotherhood.
Earlier, on 15 October, in his weekly address to thousands of people in St Peter's Square, the Pope spoke of the need to create humanitarian corridors in Gaza and also to release hostages held by Hamas.
Before that, on October 13, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Parolin said the Vatican was ready "for any necessary mediation" in the Middle East.
The situation in the Middle East escalated on the morning of 7 October when the Palestinian movement Hamas exposed Israel to massive rocket fire from the Gaza Strip and also attacked border areas in the south of the country. On the same day, Israel began retaliating against targets in the Gaza Strip and later announced the launch of Operation Iron Sword.
The Palestinians intend to return the borders between the two countries to those that existed before the 1967 Six-Day War, with a possible exchange of territory. Palestine wants to create its own state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and make East Jerusalem its capital. Israel rejects these conditions.
(Izvestia/USA)
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