As the US-Israeli war on Iran enters its third week, the first US Pope warned that violence would not bring the justice, stability and peace that the peoples of the region long for.
“For two weeks, the peoples of the Middle East have been suffering the atrocious violence of war,” the Pope said at his weekly Angelus prayer in St Peter’s Square.
“In the name of Christians in the Middle East and of all women and men of good will, I appeal to those responsible for this conflict: Cease fire!” he said.
“Thousands of innocent people have been killed, and many more have been forced to leave their homes. I renew my closeness to all those who have lost their loved ones in the attacks,” he said.
Pope Leo added that the situation in Lebanon – ravaged by a war between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah – was also a cause of “great concern”.
“I hope for paths of dialogue that can support the country's authorities in implementing lasting solutions to the serious crisis currently under way, for the common good of all the Lebanese people,” he said. REUTERS
