ROME — Pope Francis has called for an investigation into whether Israel’s actions in Gaza amount to “genocide,” according to excerpts from a new book released Sunday. The work will be released ahead of the sovereign pontiff’s jubilee year.
This is the first time that Pope Francis has openly called for an investigation into accusations of genocide linked to Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip. In September, he considered that the attacks perpetrated by the IDF in Gaza and Lebanon were “immoral” and disproportionate, and that the Israeli army had exceeded the rules governing armed conflicts.
Israel vigorously denies committing genocide in Gaza.
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The book, which was written by Hernán Reyes Alcaide and is based on interviews with the pope, is titled Hope Never Disappoints: Pilgrims to a Better World. It will be published on Tuesday.
“According to some experts, what is happening in Gaza presents the characteristics of a genocide,” the Pope said in extracts published by the Italian daily The Press.
“We should open a careful investigation to determine whether the facts correspond to the technical definition formulated by jurists and international organizations,” he adds.
Pope Francis presiding at a mass on the occasion of the World Day of the Poor in St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican, November 17, 2024. (Alessandra Tarantino/AP)
Israel’s ambassador to the Vatican has rejected Pope Francis’ suggestion that the world community should study whether Israel’s military operations in Gaza constitute genocide of the Palestinian people, saying the only act of genocide was the massacre of Israelis by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.
In the published excerpts, the pontiff said that some international experts say that “what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide.”
“Following the report released today by Vatican News: There was a genocidal massacre on October 7, 2023 of Israeli citizens, and since then, Israel has exercised its right to self-defense against attempts from seven different fronts to kill its citizens,” said Yaron Sideman, ambassador to the Holy See.
“Any attempt to call it by any other name amounts to pointing the finger at the Jewish state,” he posted on social media.
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