A popemobile once used by Pope Francis to greet cheering crowds is being transformed into a mobile health clinic to help children in war-torn Gaza.
The specially modified vehicle, which carried the late pontiff during his 2014 visit to Bethlehem, is being repurposed by Catholic charity Caritas to deliver frontline medical aid in the devastated enclave.
The Vatican confirmed this was Pope Francis’s “final wish for the children of Gaza” before his death last month. The vehicle is already in Bethlehem, awaiting permission to enter Gaza through a humanitarian corridor – a route currently blocked by Israeli authorities.
“There’ll be rapid tests, suture kits, syringes, oxygen, vaccines, and a fridge for essential medicines,” Caritas said. A team of doctors will staff the mobile clinic, with plans to reach injured and malnourished children cut off from healthcare.
“This isn’t just a vehicle – it’s a message that the world hasn’t forgotten the children of Gaza,” said Peter Brune, Secretary General of Caritas Sweden. Safety modifications are being finalised to protect it from potential blasts.
More than 15,000 children have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched a military campaign in response to Hamas’s October 2023 attack, which left 1,200 Israelis dead and 251 taken hostage. Hamas still holds 59 hostages.
UNICEF warns that nearly one million children have been displaced, with food, water and medicines at critical lows due to more than two months of aid blockades.
Pope Francis was an outspoken critic of the violence throughout his papacy. He frequently called Gaza parishioners to check on their wellbeing and used his final Easter message to plead for a ceasefire. He also urged global leaders to examine whether Israel’s actions could amount to genocide – a charge Israel strongly denies.
Caritas says it’s ready to deploy the clinic as soon as aid access is granted. Until then, the vehicle waits – a powerful symbol of hope in a battered land.
