End ‘collective punishment’ in Gaza, says Pope Leo


ROME—Pope Leo XIV demanded on Wednesday that Israel stop the “collective punishment” and forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza as he pleaded for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the besieged territory amid preparations by Israel for a new military offensive.
Leo was interrupted twice by applause as he read aloud his latest appeal for an end to the 22-month war during his weekly general audience attended by thousands of people in the Vatican’s auditorium.
The Pope also called for the release of hostages taken by Hamas in southern Israel—50 of them remain in Gaza—and for both sides and international powers to end the war “which has caused so much terror, destruction and death.”
‘Permanent ceasefire’
“I beg for a permanent ceasefire to be reached, the safe entry of humanitarian aid to be facilitated and humanitarian law to be fully respected,” Leo said. He cited international law requiring the obligation to protect civilians and “the prohibition of collective punishment, indiscriminate use of force and the forced displacement of the population.”
Palestinians in Gaza are bracing for an expanded offensive promised by Israel in some of the territory’s most populated areas including Gaza City, where famine has been documented and declared.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will launch its Gaza City offensive while simultaneously pursuing a ceasefire, though Israel has yet to send a negotiating team to discuss a proposal on the table. He has said the offensive is the best way to weaken Hamas and return hostages, but hostages’ families and their supporters have pushed back, saying it will further endanger them.
20 hostages alive
Hamas took 251 hostages on Oct. 7, 2023, in the attack that also killed about 1,200 people and triggered the war. Of the 50 hostages still in Gaza, Israeli officials believe around 20 are still alive.
Leo drew attention to a joint statement by the Latin and Greek Orthodox patriarchs of Jerusalem, who announced that the priests and nuns in the two Christian churches in Gaza City would stay put, despite Israeli evacuation orders ahead of the Gaza City offensive.