Pope Francis says he is praying for six slain hostages, calls for rest to be freed

Pope Francis says he met the mother of slain hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin last year, expressing his closeness with relatives of six Israeli hostages whose bodies were recovered from Gaza earlier this month after they were apparently executed in a Hamas tunnel.

“I think of the Middle East. So many innocent victims. I think of the mothers who have lost sons to war. How many young lives cut short,” Francis says at the end of the Angelus prayer. “I think of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, found dead in early September with five other hostages in Gaza.”

People walk next to a mural of slain Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg Polin in central Jerusalem, September 15, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

“In November last year, I met his mother, Rachel, whose humanity struck me. I accompany her at this time. I pray for the victims and continue to be close to all the families of the hostages,” he adds.

“Let the conflict in Palestine and Israel cease. Let the violence cease. Let the hatred cease. Let the hostages be released. Let negotiations continue. And may solutions for peace be found,” Francis adds.