Pope calls for review of whether Israel’s actions in Gaza amount to genocide

In some of his most explicit criticism yet of Israel’s handling of its year-long war, Pope Francis suggested that the global community should investigate whether Israel’s military action in Gaza constitutes genocide against the Palestinian people.

In excerpts published Sunday from a new book, the pope said some international experts say “what is happening in Gaza qualifies as genocide.”

“We must investigate carefully to evaluate whether this meets the technical definition (of genocide) formulated by international lawyers and organizations,” the Pope said in quotes published by the Italian newspaper La Stampa. he said.

Israel has denied all accusations of genocide. Israel’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the pope’s remarks.

Last December, South Africa filed a lawsuit against Israel at the International Court of Justice for allegedly violating the Genocide Convention. In January, judges at the court ordered Israel to ensure that its soldiers did not commit genocidal acts. The court has not yet ruled on whether genocide occurred in Gaza, which is the essence of the case.

Francis, the leader of the 1.4 billion-member Catholic Church, is generally careful not to take sides in international conflicts and to emphasize reducing tensions. However, he has recently stepped up his criticism of Israel’s conduct in its war against Hamas.

He condemned the deaths of Palestinian children in Israel’s attacks in Gaza in September. He also harshly criticized Israel’s airstrikes in Lebanon as going “beyond morality”.

Francis has not previously publicly described the situation in Gaza as genocide. But he became at the center of a complex dispute after a meeting with a group of Palestinians at the Vatican last year; While Palestinians insist he used the word specifically with them, the Vatican said he did not.

The Vatican did not comment on Francis’ final words, but the news site reported on Sunday excerpts from the book, including its commentary on genocide.