Pope Calls for Immediate Cease-Fire in Middle East

By John Thavis
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY -- With the death toll mounting in the latest wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence, Pope John Paul II called for an immediate cease-fire and respect for international law in the embattled region.

The pope spoke at a noon blessing March 3 after a week of deadly events in Jerusalem and the West Bank. On Feb. 28, Israeli troops struck two Palestinian refugee camps in search of militants and killed 23 people, including several civilians.

More than 20 Israelis were killed in two Palestinian attacks that followed, including a suicide bombing in a Jewish neighborhood of Jerusalem.

"The latest news from Jerusalem saddens me deeply," the pope said from his apartment window above St. Peter's Square.

"The violence, death and reprisal can only push civilian populations, whether Israeli or Palestinian, toward desperation and hatred. May an immediate cease-fire, together with a renewed sense of humanity and the respect of international law, silence the weapons and allow peace to be heard in the region," he said.

As he has done many times before, the pope urged prayers for peace in the Holy Land.

The Israeli incursions marked the first time ground troops had entered the refugee camps. Israel said it took the action to find Palestinian militants and prevent them from carrying out further attacks.

Palestinian leaders denounced the suicide bombing in Jerusalem and said they were against violence against civilians, but they said the escalation of Israeli military strikes in Palestinian territories has pushed Palestinians to extreme measures.

The Associated Press reported that, with the latest attacks, the Palestinian death toll surpassed 1,000 since the fighting broke out in September 2000. During the same period, more than 280 Israelis have died.

The director-general of Vatican Radio, Jesuit Father Pasquale Borgomeo, said March 5 that the international community was showing negligence in failing to deal decisively with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"The Holy See has pointed to the need for a form of mediation to resolve the conflict. But in the face of this daily horror, where are the United Nations, the United States and Europe?" Father Borgomeo said in a commentary.

He noted that a failure to offer assistance to victims of crime or accident is considered a crime in many countries and asked how that could be forgotten by countries that "proclaim they are fighting terrorism." In the Holy Land, he said, the civilians on both sides are the victims of the violence.

Father Borgomeo said Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat have shown clearly that they are unable to resolve the conflict and have allowed the violence to escalate out of control.

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