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Pope Leo XIV expressed concern on Sunday over the intensifying violence in the Middle East and repeated his appeal for renewed negotiations and peace, Vatican News, the official news outlet of the Holy See, reported.
"I continue to follow with deep concern the ongoing and escalating violence in the Holy Land," Pope Leo said during his Angelus address, a traditional papal prayer and blessing, in Castel Gandolfo, the pope's summer residence near Rome.
The pontiff pointed to the situation in the occupied West Bank and Gaza and said many civilians had recently fallen victim to the violence.
He urged "a return to negotiations aimed at achieving a just political solution, founded on the equal dignity and equal rights of every human person, and for the rejection of further military actions and unilateral decisions, particularly those that violate the respect due to and the status quo of the holy sites of every religious faith."
The pope said intensified military operations across the Middle East have brought "violence and destruction," putting civilians' lives in grave danger while worsening shortages of drinking water and electricity.
"I urge all parties involved to suspend their attacks and urgently reopen avenues of dialogue and diplomacy, so that the peace so greatly desired by the entire region may be achieved without delay," he said.
The pope's appeal came amid continued Israeli escalation in the occupied West Bank over the past several days.
On Friday, Israeli occupiers, backed by the Israeli army, attacked the Palestinian town of Tell near Nablus, killing four Palestinians. Two Israelis were also killed in a shooting during the confrontation, according to Palestinian and Israeli sources.
Israeli forces also imposed a siege on Nablus and surrounding towns following the violence, carried out mass arrest raids and announced preparations for a wide-scale military operation across the occupied West Bank.
Israeli occupiers also set fire to two mosques in separate attacks across the occupied West Bank on Sunday, targeting a mosque in the village of Kur, south of Tulkarem, and another under construction in the town of Qusra, south of Nablus, according to Palestinian officials.
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