Israel to send low-level representation to pope’s funeral

By Reuters 23 April 2025, 8:19 pm 2 Edit

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, left, prays in front of the body of Pope Francis laid out in state inside his private chapel at the Vatican, April 21, 2025. (Vatican Media via AP, HO)

Most major nations will be sending heads of state or government, or royalty, to Pope Francis’s funeral on Saturday, but Israel will be represented only by its ambassador to the Vatican.

The decision to keep the representation at about the lowest level possible is a sign of how far Israel’s relations with the Vatican have deteriorated since the start of the war with Hamas in Gaza in 2023, diplomats say.

It also follows an Israeli government decision to delete a social media post that had offered condolences for the pope’s death.