Pope Leo renews calls for end to violence against Palestinians

Pope Leo XIV, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City, on Sunday, August 16, called for an end to violence against Palestinians in the West Bank in a fresh appeal.

“I renew my appeal for an end to the ongoing violence against the Palestinian civilian population in the West Bank,” the Pope wrote on X.

He “urgently” called on international leaders and the community to establish the two-state solution for a “just and lasting peace”.

Pope Leo has consistently called for an end to the violence inflicted on Palestinians by the Israeli forces, reaffirming the Holy See’s (governing body of the Catholic Church in Vatican City) stance on the Two-State Solution, which it earlier described as the only viable path for Israel and Palestine “based on secure and internationally recognised borders.”

The remarks came as the Pope concluded the Angelus, a Catholic devotion commemorating the incarnation of Christ, on Sunday.