Pope Francis condemned the Israeli bombing of children in Gaza as “cruelty.” This was revealed after the Gaza civil defense reported seven children of one family having been killed owing to an airstrike made by Israeli forces. The Friday airstrike in North Gaza also claimed the lives of three other family members.
That very dismay was expressed by the Holy Father before the government of the Holy See as he said, “Yesterday, they did not allow the Patriarch of Jerusalem into Gaza as promised. Yesterday, children were bombed. This is cruelty, not war. I want to say it because it touches my heart,” he said.
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With the campaign of bombardment from Israel now into more than 14 months, violence continues to wreak havoc in Gaza while international mediators keep on striving for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli military claimed, “This will not be the case according to initial findings,” adding the earmark ended up not being in accord with the casualty level reported concerning the targets of its operation-that being “a handful of fighters operating within a Hamas military structure.”
The Gaza health ministry stated that more than 45,227 Palestinians had been killed in the bombardment beginning October 2023, with most being women and children. Also, more than 107,000 were injured, including 21 reported deaths over the last 24 hours.
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The Holy See is in the State of Palestine since 2013, having begun relations with the Palestinian state and promoter of a two-state solution. According to UNRWA senior emergency officer Louise Wateridge, she recalls Gaza as a graveyard because of the severe winter rains, insufficient shelter, and ongoing conflict. People are living in dire conditions where 69% of buildings are damaged or destroyed, leaving nowhere to go to find safe haven.