ROME, Italy. Israel has formally expressed its dissatisfaction after Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, denounced what he described as “carnage” in Gaza and criticized what he deemed a disproportionate military response by Israel following the October 7 Hamas attacks.
The Israeli Embassy to the Holy See labeled Cardinal Parolin’s remarks as “regrettable.” In a statement issued on Wednesday, the embassy contended that Parolin had not taken into account what it referred to as the relevant facts when assessing the legitimacy of Israel’s actions.
During a reception on Tuesday, Cardinal Parolin condemned the October 7 attacks by Hamas against Israel and denounced all forms of antisemitism. However, he questioned Israel’s assertion of acting in self-defense by causing what he referred to as “carnage” in Gaza. “Israel’s right to self-defense has been invoked to justify that this operation is proportional, but with 30,000 dead, it’s not,” he stated.
Israel has previously raised objections to the Vatican’s stance on the conflict, particularly when Pope Francis referred to “terrorism” without explicitly mentioning Hamas. Pope Francis, who regularly communicates via videoconference with a Gaza parish accommodating Palestinian civilians, has endeavored to strike a more balanced tone in his remarks. Recently, he penned a letter to the Jewish community reaffirming the special relationship between Christians and Jews.
In its statement criticizing Cardinal Parolin, the Israeli Embassy accused Hamas of transforming the Gaza Strip into what it described as “the biggest terrorist base ever seen.” It maintained that Israeli armed forces were operating within the bounds of international law and asserted that the proportion of Palestinian civilians to “terrorists” killed was lower than in other conflicts in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
Originally conveyed in Italian and then translated into English, the embassy’s statement characterized Parolin’s comments as “regrettable.” However, the embassy clarified on Thursday that its initial statement used the term “regrettable” in reference to Parolin’s remarks.
In a front-page editorial published on Thursday in the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano entitled “Stop the Carnage,” Vatican editorial director Andrea Tornielli reiterated the Vatican’s stance. Tornielli cited the views of Edith Bruck, a Holocaust survivor based in Rome, who has strongly criticized the Israeli government’s response and linked it to a rise in antisemitic incidents worldwide. “No one can define what is happening in the Strip as ‘collateral damage’ from the fight against terrorism,” Tornielli wrote. “The right of defense, the right of Israel to ensure justice for those responsible for the October massacre, cannot justify this carnage.”
The front page of Friday’s edition of the Vatican newspaper reported on a group of rabbis expressing gratitude to Pope Francis for his February 2 letter to Israeli Jews. According to excerpts from the letter, the rabbis commended the Catholic Church’s commitment to transforming its relationship with the Jewish people from one of rivalry and incomprehension to one of friendship.
Si Venus L Peñaflor ay naging editor-in-chief ng Newsworld, isang lokal na pahayagan ng Laguna. Publisher din siya ng Daystar Gazette at Tutubi News Magazine. Siya ay isa ring pintor at doll face designer ng Ninay Dolls, ang unang Manikang Pilipino. Kasali siya sa DesignCrowd sa rank na #305 sa 640,000 graphic designers sa buong daigdig. Kasama din siya sa unang Local TV Broadcast sa Laguna na Beyond Manila. Aktibong kasapi siya ng San Pablo Jaycees Senate bilang isang JCI Senator.
