Pope decries ‘unacceptable’ plight of Palestinians in Gaza, urges truce

VATICAN CITY – Pope Leo XIV on Sept 17 denounced the “unacceptable” conditions faced by Palestinians in Gaza, voicing solidarity with civilians and renewing his appeal for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas.

“I express my deep closeness to the Palestinian people in Gaza, who continue to live in fear and survive in unacceptable conditions, forced once again to leave their land,” the Pope said in his weekly general audience at the Vatican.

Israel

launched a major ground assault

on Gaza City on Sept 16, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes amid what residents said was the heaviest bombardment in two years of war.

The Pope renewed

his call for a truce

, the freeing of hostages held in Gaza and a negotiated diplomatic solution.

He urged the faithful to join him in prayer “that a dawn of peace and justice may soon arise”.

Pope Leo,

elected as the first US pontiff in May

, has been stepping up calls for a halt to the war in Gaza in recent weeks.

Earlier in September, he

met Israeli President Isaac Herzog

at the Vatican. In an unusually lengthy statement afterwards, the Vatican said he lamented the “tragic situation in Gaza” with Mr Herzog. REUTERS