The Palestinian professor and pastor Mitri Raheb in Bethlehem has long been a strong advocate for Palestinians' rights. He has often been in contact with representatives of the small congregation in Gaza.
I think of all the children who grow up in this, not just during the war but also earlier, with extensive Israeli atrocities every other or every third year. What will become of them, he asks himself in a telephone interview with TT.
After years of statements from the outside world about humanitarian rights and talk of finding a solution to the situation in the Middle East, it's time to act, he says.
"Time to act"
The Gaza war broke out after the terrorist-stamped Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023. Since then, 18 months have passed with intensive Israeli attacks on Gaza. Israel's military claims to be trying to avoid harming civilians – but testimonies from both Gazans and human rights organizations and UN agencies contradict this image.
Some go so far as to accuse Israel of genocide. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is himself the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, where he is being investigated for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Church leaders and politicians in the outside world are all too silent, says Mitri Raheb. He wants them to take a clear stance for all those suffering under the war.
There has been talk for so long about humanitarian rights. Now it's time to act, he says.
The Pope called
The Christian congregation in Gaza has received support during the war in the form of regular telephone calls from Pope Francis. But after the Pope's passing on Monday, the phone is silent.
He called us daily during the war, even on the darkest days, during bombings, when people were killed and injured all around us. The communication was constant, day and night, says priest Gabriel Romanelli in Gaza to Deutsche Welle.
The Church's spokesperson George Anton says that the Pope used to have many concerns.
He asked us how we were doing, what we ate, if we had clean water, if anyone was injured, says the Church's spokesperson George Anton to NPR.
It was never diplomacy or a question of obligation. It was the questions a father would ask.
"Understood suffering"
Mitri Raheb believes that the Pope's commitment to peace and to the Christians in Gaza had to do with the fact that he came from the global South.
Pope Francis had a different view of the world than previous Popes. He understood suffering, he says.
