POPE FRANCIS reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza in an Easter Sunday message read aloud by an aide as the pontiff, still recovering from pneumonia, during a brief appearance on the main balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.
Just a few hours before he passed away, on Easter Sunday, Pope Francis delivered his Urbi et Orbi message “to the city and to the world”—focusing on the Holy Land, which he described as “wounded by conflict” and gripped by an “endless outburst of violence.”
He expressed solidarity with the people of Gaza.
“I appeal once again,” he said, “for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip”.
The Pope urged the international community to take action and “come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace.”
That message from Francis was on the day before he passed away, left the earth and went to God.
The war was triggered the continued occupation of Gaza and other parts of Palestine by ISRAEL since 1947. Then the attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023, in which 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
Since then, more than 51,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive, over 30% of them women and children. Like this child of 2 years old murdered by the Israeli army which dubbed anyone they kill as being a “terrorist.” The Gaza health ministry says 1,600 people have been killed in March April 2025, after the ceasefire was ended by Israel.
‘War is a Defeat’. Referring to Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine the POPE rightly stated that “war is defeat”
On October 29, 2023, during his Angelus address, Pope Francis called for a ceasefire in Gaza. He urged for humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza and for all captives to be freed. He emphasized that “War is always a defeat! Every war is a defeat!”. TAKE THE Courageous Paths to Peace’. The Pope called for a ceasefire and urged to “find solutions other than arms, trying to take courageous paths to peace.”
————————————
Israel is attempting the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza, from 1948 till now, but mainly during the last 16 months when Israel destroyed most schools, most hospitals, most housing, most roads, most production systems, and attempted to starve the population of Gaza/Palestine.
Now we witness the end of the continued non-recognition of Palestine by Israel. The ‘imprisonment’ of the Palestinian people till today, denied return to their land, denied the two-state solution—one being an independent Palestine. A process of independence for Palestine, Gaza, and the West Bank. A difficult process that needs the support of all states of the REGION AND OF THE WORLD. A process that Hamas can help by dissolving itself under its present armed forces constitution and reforming itself as, for example, the PPP (Palestine Political Party), devoted entirely to rebuilding Palestine and its efficient governance.
We mourn the 50,000 Palestinians, including 20,000 WOMEN and CHILDREN killed in the last 24 months, also more than 100,000 people injured, and the more than 12,000 missing. We also mourn the toll on Israelis killed, numbering 1,200. A sad tragedy of human wickedness. Now, of course, the UN agencies and all nations in the area (Egypt, Doha, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and others) as well as those outsides are starting a huge help movement to feed the Gaza people (reduced to starvation by Israel in its genocide attempt) and start the reconstruction of habitats, schools, hospitals, production and commercial structures, roads, and communications, etc. In fact, to rebuild all.
All states must now support and indeed put pressure on Israel and Hamas FOR A CEASE FIRE NOW and fully implement the ceasefire and agreement. Then the rebuilding of Gaza can start in earnest.
Dr Michael Atchia
(Past Programme Director, United Nations)
20th April 2025
