World

Pope slams 'cruelty' of strike killing Gaza children

Pope Francis
 
Pope Francis
VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis on Saturday condemned the bombing of children in Gaza as 'cruelty', a day after the territory's rescue agency said an Israeli air strike killed seven children from one family. Gaza's civil defence rescue agency reported that an Israeli air strike killed 10 members of a family on Friday in the northern part of the territory, including seven children. 'Yesterday they did not allow the Patriarch into Gaza as promised. Yesterday children were bombed. This is cruelty, this is not war,' he told members of the government of the Holy See. 'I want to say it because it touches my heart.'

The health ministry in Gaza said on Saturday that at least 45,227 people have been killed during more than 14 months of war between Israel and Palestinian groups. The toll includes 21 deaths in the previous 24 hours which said 107,573 people have been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began on October 7, 2023. — AFP