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“Enough, brothers and sisters!” Pope Francis appealed regarding conflicts and increasing tensions in the Middle East, after praying the midday Angelus in St. Peter’s Square on August 4, 2024.
“I am following with great concern what is taking place in the Middle East, and I hope that the conflict, already terribly bloody and violent, will not spread even further,” Pope Francis said. “Attacks, even targeted ones, and killings can never be a solution. They do not help to walk in the path of justice, the path of peace, but generate even more hatred and revenge.”
“Enough, brothers and sisters! Enough! Do not stifle the word of the God of Peace, but let it be the future of the Holy Land, the Middle East and the entire world! War is a defeat!,” the Pontiff insisted.
The Pope’s words came as tensions have been increasing across the Middle East after the death of Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh, on July 31 in Iran. The latter blames Israel for the death, but it has yet to confirm or deny.
Then on July 30 Israel claimed it had killed Fuad Shukr, a top military commander of Hezbollah, in Lebanon.
Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah could retaliate against Israel as tensions are high across the region. Many governments have advised their citizens to leave Lebanon.
The courage to resume dialogue
Pope Francis also called for “the courage to resume dialogue so that there is an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and on all fronts, the hostages are freed, and the people are helped with humanitarian aid.”
He said he was praying for all the victims, “especially the innocent children,” and he expressed his sympathy to the Druze community in the Holy Land and “the populations in Palestine, Israel, and Lebanon.”
On July 27, a rocket strike killed 12 children in Golan Heights, an Israel-occupied area mostly inhabited by the Druze community, an Arab religious minority within Israel. Israel claimed it was caused by Hezbollah but the group issued a denial of being behind the attack, according to the Associated Press.
Pray for the intercession of Blessed Patriarch Estephan El Douaihy!
During the Angelus address, the Pope also highlighted the 17th-century patriarch of the Maronite Church, Estephan El Douaihy, who was beatified in Bkerke, Lebanon, the previous Friday, August 2.
“A teacher of the faith and an attentive pastor, he was a witness of hope always close to the people. Even today, the Lebanese people suffer so much!,” the Pope said remembering the anniversary of the explosion at the Port of Beirut on August 4, 2020.
“I hope that justice and truth will soon be done. May the new Blessed sustain the faith and hope of the Church in Lebanon, and intercede for this beloved country. Let us applaud the new Blessed!” he said.
