ROME: In some of his most direct criticisms to date of Israel’s actions during its year-long war in Gaza, Pope Francis has proposed that the international community investigate whether Israel’s military campaign there amounts to a genocide of the Palestinian people.
The pontiff stated that some foreign experts believe that “what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide” in passages released on Sunday from a book that will be published soon.
In the passages, which were published by the Italian daily La Stampa, the pope stated, “We should carefully investigate to assess whether this fits into the technical definition (of genocide) formulated by international jurists and organizations.”
South Africa accused Israel of violating the Genocide Convention and brought a case against it before the International Court of Justice last December. The court’s judges mandated in January that Israel make sure its troops don’t carry out any crimes of genocide. The central question of the lawsuit, whether genocide has taken place in Gaza, has not yet been decided by the court.
The pontiff’s condemnation of Israel’s actions in the besieged enclave has intensified.
Israel claims that its campaign in Gaza is only targeting Hamas and other armed groups and that any claims of genocide are unfounded.
Pope Francis’ most recent comments were not addressed by the Vatican, although the book excerpts, including the genocide comment, were covered by its news website on Sunday.
As the head of the Catholic Church, which has 1.4 billion members, Pope Francis typically emphasizes de-escalation and avoids taking sides in international disputes. However, he has recently become more vocal in his criticism of Israel’s actions during its war against Hamas.
He denounced the Israeli strikes in Gaza in September that killed Palestinian youngsters. Additionally, he harshly criticized Israel for its attacks in Lebanon, saying they went “beyond morality.”
Pope Francis has never before publicly referred to the situation in Gaza as a genocide. However, following a meeting with a group of Palestinians at the Vatican last year, he became embroiled in a contentious debate. The Palestinians claimed he had used the phrase with them in private, while the Vatican denied this.
