₦airaland Forum

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m31oh6vgpus

VATICAN CITY, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Saturday again condemned Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, a day after an Israeli government minister publicly denounced the pontiff for suggesting the global community should study whether the military offensive there constitutes a genocide of the Palestinian people.

Francis opened his annual Christmas address to the Catholic cardinals who lead the Vatican's various departments with what appeared to be a reference to Israeli airstrikes on Friday that killed at least 25 Palestinians in Gaza.

"Yesterday, children were bombed," said the pope. "This is cruelty. This is not war. I wanted to say this because it touches the heart."
The pope, as leader of the 1.4-billion-member Roman Catholic Church, is usually careful about taking sides in conflicts, but he has recently been more outspoken about Israel's military campaign against Palestinian militant group Hamas.

In book excerpts published last month, the pontiff said some international experts said that "what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide".
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Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli sharply criticised those comments in an unusual open letter published by Italian newspaper Il Foglio on Friday. Chikli said the pope's remarks amounted to a "trivialisation" of the term genocide.

Israel's foreign ministry said that Israel was defending itself against the cruelty exemplified by Hamas militants "hiding behind children while trying to murder Israeli children," holding 100 hostages and abusing them.
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"Unfortunately, the Pope has chosen to ignore all of this," the ministry said, adding that the "death of any innocent person in a war is a tragedy."

"Israel makes extraordinary efforts to prevent harm to innocents, while Hamas makes extraordinary efforts to increase harm to Palestinian civilians," the ministry said.
Francis also said on Saturday that the Catholic bishop of Jerusalem, known as a patriarch, had tried to enter the Gaza Strip on Friday to visit Catholics there, but was denied entry.

The patriarch's office told Reuters it was not able to comment on the pope's remarks about the patriarch being denied entry.
The Israeli military said on Saturday the patriarch's entry had been approved and he would enter Gaza on Sunday, barring any major security issues. Aid from the patriarch's office entered last week, the military said.

Israel allows clerics to enter Gaza and "works in cooperation with the Christian community to make it easier for the Christian population that remains in the Gaza Strip – including coordinating its removal from the Gaza Strip to a third country," a statement from the military said.

The war began when Hamas-led Palestinian militants attacked southern Israeli communities on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking more than 250 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli authorities.

Israel's retaliatory campaign, which it says is aimed at eliminating Hamas, has killed more than 45,000 people, mostly civilians, according to authorities in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip. The campaign has displaced nearly the entire population and left much of the enclave in ruins.

Israel says that at least a third of the dead have been militants and says it tries to avoid harm to civilians but is battling militants who it accuses of embedding among the population in dense urban areas. Hamas rejects this.
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https://www.reuters.com/world/pope-calls-gaza-airstrikes-cruelty-after-israeli-ministers-criticism-2024-12-21/

Watch as supporters of Israel will disrespect this man for saying the truth since they have no respect for anyone with opposing views

Will antisemitic card be played this time, let's see if he will be banned from going to Israel

Israel will witness another Holocaust. It is inevitable.

Is he a hypocritical pope. I remember . Is he a stuge installed by Obama and democrats.

Did the swamp during Obama pressured pope Francis to forcefully retire?.

Now I get why he is one of the remnants of the swamp Trump want to drain

They should Isreal to finish with the head slamming terrorists.

How dare the Pope tell Israel that killing children is horrific? Dont you know that Israel experienced the holocaust where over 6 millions Jews were killed and the soviet union lost over 22 million people to the say war. Israel have suffered alot children throw stones at is but we shoot and bomb them back, we are horrified by the stone they injure us we cant bear it, the Palestinian are human animal but we are the superior race just like the Nazi... The Israel State is a pathetic group of people 🙄

I have respect for the Pope, but i know that as a human being, he may not be right always.

Anything that will utterly destroy terrorists and their supporters is welcome by me, so I support Israel on this.

Pope STFU

I don't know what the Pope is trying to say

Biodun556:
Israel will witness another Holocaust. It is inevitable.

Lolzzz not in a million years

Okay

Even as a Catholic, I think the Pope shouldn't involve himself deeply or sentimentally in this.

He should forget all these trying to show concern for humanity talk and let these people protect themselves and their loved ones the way they deem fit.

Very sad

Jews are the most cruel hearted people to exist in this world, hitler saw something people didn’t see in these people, their wickedness has no boundaries, one reason God allowed the devil to deal with them through hitler in ww11

BabaIbo:
Even as a Catholic, I think the Pope shouldn't involve himself deeply

so he should shut up and watch this genocide unfold

Them go bash Pope tire today! Some may even take the trolling further to X.

Biodun556:
Israel will witness another Holocaust. It is inevitable.

Those days are over buddy.

Wow, the Pope must be one of the Islamist fanatics according to the low-IQ IPOB retards in Nigeria.

Sanhedrin 57a:16
“If a Jew murders a gentile, he is exempt … a Jew may kill a gentile”

As for you accursed " Christians" supporting the terrorism of these synagogue satan, your cup will overflow with bitter dregs

If you are conditioned as a Christian to support Israel no matter what, then you are no different from the boko guys in sambisa

Just because they bear ‘Israel’ doesn't mean they’re always right

It is entering into the territory of genocide

You can’t be bombing unarmed women and children and think it’s alright. Palestine has no standing army. Fish out Hamas and stop killing innocent civilians who didn’t even want the Hamas as rulers. Imagine bombing Nigeria because of APC. How many voted for or wanted APC. Even God left Israel in bondage in Egypt for 400 years because of their stubbornness

Pope is misguided in this one. Israel has never started a war with its neighbors. If your enemies hide inside children and start shooting missiles what other choice do you have to defend yourself

bestman09:
I have respect for the Pope, but i know that as a human being, he may not be right always.

Anything that will utterly destroy terrorists and their supporters is welcome by me, so I support Israel on this.

The Pope is wrong because he is human. So Netanyahu and you are right but are not human beings. Interesting and true

War is never the solution at times

DeathToRiggers:
The pope is mad. Silly folly eediot. Hamas asked for war, they are yet to see the war.

CHAI !, And you want to grow old? Nature has a way of fixing things. Just be careful.

BafanaBafana:
If you are conditioned as a Christian to support Israel no matter what, then you are no different from the boko guys in sambisa

do you support Hama's hiding in civilian populated areas and attacking Israel

I'm a Catholic and I think the pope is wrong about this. The pope should stop all this rubbish politics, he can do better. He's sitting of saint Peter. So he should respect that sit

🤦🏽‍♀️

Failing to condemn October 7 massacre and criticizing Israel is the highest level of choosing side

The Apartheid Israeli terrorist genocide will never be forgotten.

FVCK ISRAEL.