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Pope urges peace on Christmas, condemns Gaza war
Pope Francis appealed for worldwide peace and chided those who profit off war in his annual Christmas Day address from St. Peter’s Square.
The 87-year-old pontiff focused particularly on the Israel-Hamas war, occurring just west of Jesus’ traditional birthplace in Bethlehem. He called Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack “abominable” and further called on Israel to stop its campaign against Gaza, taking time to criticize the “appalling harvest of innocent civilians.”
The pope noted this year that the birth of Christ is supposed to signify peace on Earth, yet Bethlehem “is a place of sorrow and silence” this year.
Francis similarly used last year’s “Urbi et Orbi” (“To the City and the World”) speech to decry war and the weapons manufacturers who profit from its death and destruction.
The pontiff mentioned several conflicts across the globe in Monday’s speech, from Armenia and Azerbaijan to Syria and Yemen, Ukraine to South Sudan and Congo to the Korean peninsula. In all cases, Francis said he hoped peaceful dialogue would prevail instead of war.
Several Palestinian flags were visible in the 70,000-person crowd at St. Peter’s Square. The pope told the world he hoped for conflict resolution “through sincere and persevering dialogue between the parties, sustained by strong political will and the support of the international community.”
Francis also took aim at the weapons industry, which he accused of fueling the conflicts to test new technologies.
“It should be talked about and written about, so as to bring to light the interests and the profits that move the puppet strings of war,” he said. “And how can we even speak of peace, when arms production, sales and trade are on the rise?”
The pope showed a few signs of his recent battle with bronchitis, occasionally coughing or pausing to regain his breath. The pontiff skipped a couple of his weekly addresses this year as he battled the illness.
Though the Urbi et Orbi speech was Francis’ main appearance on Christmas Day, he has a busy schedule over the holidays. He will deliver a blessing on Tuesday, the Feast of St. Stephen, and will celebrate New Year’s Eve with a vigil in St. Peter’s Basilica, followed by a New Year’s Day Mass.