Gaza – In the night between Monday 21 and Tuesday 22 July, the Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip caused further destruction and casualties among the civilian population. The number of Palestinians killed have exceeded 580, while among the Israeli soldiers there have been 27 deaths so far. In the latest round of Israeli raids even four mosques and several health centers have been affected. "What is happening in Gaza", says to Fides Agency His Beatitude Michel Sabbah, Patriarch Emeritus of Jerusalem of the Latins, "is not a war, but rather a massacre. A useless massacre, which will not advance even one step Israel towards peace and security.
On the contrary, with all these human sacrifices, the hearts of Israelis and Palestinians are full of new hatred". According to the Patriarch Emeritus, "the means to achieve peace can only be a means of peace.
For sixty years we have seen that wars, weapons, massacres are unable to secure any kind of peace". According to His Beatitude Sabbah, "the only way out of the spiral of violence and destruction is to address the underlying issue, which is the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. There will be peace and security only when Israel will recognize the freedom and sovereignty of the Palestinian state. But maybe we will have to wait for a new generation of Israeli leaders to see this happen. The current leaders bel ieve only in the military force. They have sophisticated weapons to kill, and no power to make peace".
By:Fides News
