Pope Francis on Sunday renewed his call for an end to the Israel-Hamas conflict, urging the release of hostages and humanitarian aid for Gaza, describing the situation as “very serious”.
“I continue to think about the serious situation in Palestine and in Israel where many people have lost their lives,” the pope said after the traditional Angelus prayer at Saint Peter’s Square in Rome.
“I beg you in the name of God to stop, cease fire,” he said.
“I hope all the possibilities are being explored so that a widening of the conflict is absolutely avoided, that the wounded can be helped, and that aid can reach Gaza, where the humanitarian situation is very serious, and that the hostages be immediately released.”
Hamas militants stormed into Israel from the Gaza Strip on October 7, killing at least 1,400 people, and taking 240 people hostage, according to Israeli authorities, in the deadliest attack in the country’s history.
Israel has relentlessly bombarded the besieged Gaza Strip in response, killing more than 9,770 people, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
The pope has previously pleaded for an end to the conflict and for humanitarian aid to be allowed into the Gaza Strip.
He spoke to US President Joe Biden last month about “conflict situations in the world and the need to identify paths to peace”, according to the Vatican.
AFP
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
