the pope expresses his “deep concern” from St. Peter’s Square

Pope Francis expressed, on Sunday March 9, on the occasion of the feast of Easter, his “serious concern because of the attacks of recent days” in the Middle East, which according to him threaten the “dialogue” between Israelis and Palestinians.

Violence in Jerusalem and the region “threaten the desired climate of trust and mutual respect necessary to resume dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians”, said the Argentine pope during his traditional “Urbi et Orbi” blessing, in front of some 100,000 faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square, in the Vatican.

UN and EU condemnation

This week has been marked by a new upsurge in violence in the Middle East, notably in the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, where the Israeli police intervened to dislodge Palestinian worshipers in the middle of the religious holiday season, arousing multiple international condemnations.

Israel also announced overnight from Saturday to Sunday that it had struck Syria in response to rocket fire towards the annexed part of the Golan Heights, after similar fire from neighboring Lebanon and the Gaza Strip in recent days. The UN and the European Union have condemned the shootings and called for restraint after this unprecedented escalation on the Israeli-Lebanese front since 2006.

François, whose health seems increasingly fragile and who uses a wheelchair due to knee pain, also presided over Easter mass before enjoying a long walkabout aboard his “Papamobile” in the alleys of Saint-Pierre square.