Vatican Secretary of State Pietro
Parolin on Monday expressed concern for the "systematic
violation" of international law after Israel's embassy to the
Holy See issued a note saying that the Israeli operation in the
Gaza Strip was being conducted in compliance with international
legislation in response to Pope Francis's expressed sadness for
"the resumption of heavy Israeli bombings" in his Angelus
message.
"We hope this is the case because we are very worried by the
systematic violation at this point of international law", said
Cardinal Parolin concerning the note.
"The Pope's silence today sounds even more deafening regarding
the resumption of fighting in many parts of the world, but it is
a call to stop, to find paths of dialogue and peace", added
Parolin.
"We have also recently spoken with the International Red Cross
and they are very much in difficulty, the bombing of civilians,
the killing of humanitarian operators are all actions that go
exactly against humanitarian law and today there is no respect
for the law and this is one of the great limits of this season:
there is no respect for humanitarian law anymore", he noted.
Israel's embassy to the Holy See said Monday that the Israeli
operation in the Gaza Strip complied by international law and
intended to minimize civilian casualties.
"While Hamas deliberately targets civilians", Israel adopts
"extraordinary measures" to reduce to a minimum collateral
damage, said the statement released "in reference to the
Angelus".
"Hamas has repeatedly violated the ceasefire and has used it to
rebuild its military arsenal", the note went on to say, adding
that "59 hostages are still detained in Gaza in inhuman
conditions" and the "State of Israel believes it is its moral
duty to bring them back home".
In his Angelus message on Sunday the pope said he was "saddened
by the resumption of heavy Israeli bombings on the Gaza Strip,
with many dead and wounded.
"I ask that the weapons be silenced immediately; and that we
have the courage to resume dialogue, so that all the hostages
may be freed and a definitive ceasefire may be reached.
"In the Strip, the humanitarian situation is once again very
serious and requires the urgent commitment of the warring
parties and the international community," the pontiff added.
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