Pope meets with Palestinian President

On Thursday morning, 12 December, Pope Francis held a 30-minute meeting with Mahmoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine. President Abbas subsequently met with the Holy See’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher. According to a statement from the Holy See Press Office, the “very serious humanitarian situation in Gaza” was discussed at the meetings, as was the hope for “a ceasefire and the release of all hostages as soon as possible”. Another topic was “the Catholic Church’s important contribution to Palestinian society”, including its current humanitarian efforts in Gaza. The Holy See Press Office statement said that the discussion had also covered the necessity of implementing a two-state solution, not with violence but via ...