The injury and death of so many innocent people, especially children, caused by escalating violence between Israel and the Gaza Strip is “terrible and unacceptable,” putting the area at risk of sinking into “a spiral of death and destruction,” Pope Francis said.
On Sept. 15 at the White House, Israel signed diplomatic pacts to normalize relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. While specific details of the pacts are not yet public, the three countries will open embassies and establish economic ties including tourism, technology, and energy.
Among other aspects of the plan announced Jan. 28, Trump proposed the recognition of Israeli sovereignty over West Bank settlements, creating Israeli enclave communities in the heart of the West Bank while promising the possibility of a future independent Palestinian state under certain conditions.
Staten Island state Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, who was the GOP’s mayoral candidate in 2017, spoke out against persecution against Christians in the Middle East after she returned from a trip to the Holy Land and learned about the situation there firsthand.
Reflecting on the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the Holy See and Israel, New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan hailed the occasion as an international achievement that has “quite literally made the world a better place.”
A retired patriarch of Jerusalem called on both Israel and Palestine to “leave war.” He urged Israel specifically to move towards peace with the Palestinians, saying that the Palestinians wanted peace as well.
Dear Editor: Political propaganda should not be confused with the truths of the Bible which we all believe in. Rosemarie Pace may have a problem with saying that Bethlehem is part of Israel, but the Holy Scriptures make clear that Saul, David and Solomon were Kings of Israel. David was from Bethlehem which in Hebrew means City of Bread. That has been the city’s name from Biblical times. The Bible also makes clear God’s covenant with Abraham regarding the Land of Israel and its promise to his descendants
