Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday called for Israel to stop the “collective punishment” and forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza as he pleaded for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the territory amid preparations by Israel for a new military offensive.
Leo was interrupted twice by applause as he read aloud his latest appeal for an end to the 22-month war during his weekly general audience attended by thousands of people in the Vatican’s auditorium.
The pope also called for the release of hostages abducted by Hamas from southern Israel — 50 of them remain in Gaza — and for both sides and international powers to end the war “which has caused so much terror, destruction and death.”
“I implore that all hostages be freed, that a permanent ceasefire be reached, that the safe entry of humanitarian aid be facilitated, and that international humanitarian law be fully respected,” he said.
The pope did not directly name Israel or the Hamas, but said that international law required “the obligation to protect civilians, prohibitions against collective punishment, indiscriminate use of force, and the forced displacement of the population.”
His call comes as Israel has begun issuing evacuation orders to the civilian population in Gaza City ahead of an expected offensive to capture the city.
The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
Of the 50 hostages still in Gaza, 20 are believed to still be alive, and Israel has voiced “grave concerns” about a further two; the remaining 28 have been confirmed dead by the Israel Defense Forces.
Leo drew attention to a joint statement by the Latin and Greek Orthodox patriarchs of Jerusalem, who announced that the priests and nuns in the two Christian churches in Gaza City would stay put, despite Israeli evacuation orders.
They said the people sheltering in the churches were too weak and malnourished to move and that doing so would be a “death sentence.”
The Holy Family Catholic church and the Saint Porphyrius Orthodox church have sheltered hundreds of Palestinian civilians during the war, including elderly people, women and children as well as people with disabilities.
Pope Francis, even during his final days in the hospital, stayed in daily touch with the parish priest of Holy Family to offer his solidarity and support to the people there, cared for by the nuns of Mother Teresa’s Sisters of Charity religious order.
In their joint statement, Catholic Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa and Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III noted that just last weekend, Leo issued a strong statement about the rights of people to remain in their homelands and not be forced to move.
“All peoples, even the smallest and weakest, must be respected by the powerful in their identity and rights, especially the right to live in their own lands; and no one can force them into exile,” Leo said in comments Saturday to a group of refugees from the Indian Ocean archipelago Chagos that were clearly destined for a broader audience.
Palestinians in Gaza are bracing for an expanded offensive promised by Israel in some of the territory’s most populated areas, including Gaza City.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will move forward with the offensive while simultaneously pursuing a hostage-ceasefire deal, though Israel has yet to send a negotiating team to discuss a proposal on the table.
The proposal, which Hamas said earlier this month it had agreed to, would see 10 living hostages and the bodies of about half of the dead hostages returned to Israel, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners, some thousand Gazan detainees, and a 60-day ceasefire, amid negotiations for a permanent end to the war.
The premier has said the offensive is the best way to weaken Hamas and return hostages, but many of the hostages’ families and their supporters have pushed back, saying it will further endanger them.