Pope Leo makes ‘heartfelt appeal’ for Israel to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza
Pontiff cites ‘painful’ situation in Palestinian enclave during his first weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square, reportedly doesn’t mention hostages
Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday appealed for Israel to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, calling the situation in the Palestinian enclave “yet more worrying and painful.”
“I renew my heartfelt appeal to allow the entry of sufficient humanitarian aid and to put an end to the hostilities, the heartbreaking price of which is paid by children, the elderly, the sick,” the pope said during his first weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square.
He was not reported to have mentioned the hostages held by terror groups in Gaza, who were abducted from Israel during the Hamas-led attack that triggered the war in the Palestinian enclave.
Leo, who was elected on May 8 to be the Catholic Church’s first pope from the US, has made peace a theme of his papacy so far, calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.
In his first Sunday message on May 11, the new pope called for an immediate ceasefire and for the release of all Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian terror group Hamas, which led a devastating invasion of southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
Over 5,000 terrorists burst into the country from the Gaza Strip, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians. The attackers also abducted 251 people as hostages to Gaza, where dozens remain.
Israel responded with a military campaign to destroy Hamas, topple its Gaza regime, and free the hostages.
It has come under massive international pressure to abandon its campaign, which intensified over the weekend, and allow urgent humanitarian aid into the besieged strip.
Israel had blocked all aid from entering Gaza since March 2, arguing that sufficient humanitarian assistance had entered the Strip during a six-week ceasefire and that Hamas was stealing aid, with the blockade necessary to pressure the terror group to release the dozens of hostages it is holding.
In recent weeks, however, some officials in the Israel Defense Forces have begun warning the political leadership that the enclave was on the brink of starvation.
Israel said on Monday that it would allow aid to enter Gaza, ending the 11-week blockade on the enclave. The United Nations received permission from Israel for 93 aid trucks to enter the Gaza Strip on Tuesday.
Aid groups say that the amount being allowed in is not enough to meet needs.
UN agencies and humanitarian organizations have reported on increasing rates of malnutrition in Gaza and warned of an impending humanitarian disaster unless large amounts of aid are brought into the territory
On Tuesday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced his government had paused free trade talks with Israel and summoned the Israeli ambassador over the situation in Gaza.
The Times of Israel Community.