Pope Francis met with KGB asset Abbas in Vatican
12.12.2024
On Thursday, December 12, Pope Francis held talks with the head of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas in the Vatican, The Jerusalem Post reports, noting that this is their first personal meeting in three years. The negotiations were held in a closed format and lasted about half an hour.
The Vatican did not provide details of the communication, noting only that the parties discussed the "extremely difficult humanitarian situation in Gaza", and expressing in its statement hope for an early achievement of a truce and the release of all hostages. Abbas, commenting on the meeting, thanked the Pope "for supporting a just peace in Palestine on the basis of the decision to create two states".
The Pope, as the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, which has 1.4 billion parishioners, is usually cautious about accepting one or another side in conflicts, but in recent months he has intensified criticism of Israel's military actions in Gaza and Lebanon, the publication notes. By the way, Abbas' trip to Rome, where he will meet with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, coincided with a visit to the country by Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who also has a meeting with Francis.
It should be noted that last weekend Francis opened a nativity scene in the Vatican, created by Palestinian artists, the cradle of which was covered with a kufia. On Wednesday, December 11, after a negative reaction from the public, the nativity scene was removed.