ROME – After a year that saw thousands of civilians killed in wars and violent conflicts, Pope Francis told diplomats accredited to the Holy See that international war crimes must be recognised and prevented.
In his 8 January address, the Pope noted that as the year 2024 opens the world is “increasingly lacerated” by conflict, and that “the distinction between military and civil objectives is no longer respected”.
“There is no conflict that does not end up in some way indiscriminately striking the civilian population,” he said.
Noting that “the events in Ukraine and Gaza are clear proof of this”, he stated that “we must not forget that grave violations of international humanitarian law are war crimes, and that it is not sufficient to point them out, but also necessary to prevent them”.
He added: “Consequently, there is a need for greater effort on the part of the international community to defend and implement humanitarian law, which seems to be the only way to ensure the defence of human dignity in situations of warfare.”
Pope Francis spoke during his annual speech to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See, who represent the 184 nations that currently have full diplomatic relations with the Holy See – the government of the Roman Catholic Church – as well as those with other forms of representation.
He focused his speech on the topic of peace “at a moment in history when it is increasingly threatened, weakened and in part lost”, repeating his past affirmation that the world is experiencing “a third world war fought piecemeal” that is turning into “a genuine global conflict”.
In terms of current conflicts, the Pope pointed specifically to the conflict raging between Israel and Palestine, voicing “shock” at Hamas’s 7 October attack on Israel and the torture, killing, and kidnapping of hundreds of innocent people.
He condemned the attack “and every instance of terrorism and extremism”, saying violence is never a way to resolve conflicts.
As proof of this, he highlighted how the Hamas attack provoked “a strong Israeli military response in Gaza that has led to the death of tens of thousands of Palestinians, mainly civilians…and has caused an exceptionally grave humanitarian crisis and inconceivable suffering”.
Israel has faced allegations of war crimes during the conflict in Gaza. Of the estimated 17,000 Palestinian civilians who have died in the war, roughly 70 percent are women and children. Francis repeated his call for a ceasefire “on every front, including Lebanon”, and he urged the immediate release of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza.
He also repeated his calls for a two-state solution: “one Israeli and one Palestinian, as well as an internationally guaranteed special status for the City of Jerusalem, so that Israelis and Palestinians may finally live in peace and security.”
Pope Francis also lamented the ongoing war “waged by the Russian Federation against Ukraine”, saying: “One cannot allow the persistence of a conflict that continues to metastasize, to the detriment of millions of persons. It is necessary to put an end to the present tragedy through negotiations.”
Last year the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin on various charges, and Russian politician Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, Commissioner for Children’s Rights in the Office of the President of the Russian Federation, for the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia.
In his speech, Pope Francis said there is a need “to realize more clearly that civilian victims are not ‘collateral damage’”, but real people with names, faces and stories.
“Were we to be able to look each of them in the eye, call them by name, and learn something of their personal history, we would see war for what it is: Nothing other than an immense tragedy, a ‘useless slaughter’,” he said.
He lamented various other conflicts raging throughout the world, issuing a condemnation of the “protracted crisis” in Nicaragua causing “painful consequences” for society, including the Catholic Church, with Bishop Rolando José Álvarez still behind bars.
Pope Francis again condemned the global arms industry and called for a global policy of disarmament, “since it is illusory to think that weapons have deterrent value”.
“Weapons create mistrust and divert resources,” he said, insisting that funds invested in weapons would be better spent on alleviating crises in food, education and healthcare. To this end, he also condemned the prominence of nuclear weapons and called for negotiations to restart the Iran Nuclear Deal.
In his speech, he also addressed global migration and lamented the thousands of migrants who fall victims to traffickers or die along perilous routes in their attempt to find a better life.
He also said peace cannot be achieved without respect for every human life, “starting with the life of the unborn child in the mother’s womb”, and he condemned the practice of surrogate motherhood, calling it a “grave violation” of both the women and children involved. He called for the international community to collectively prohibit the practice.
He criticised gender theory, calling it “extremely dangerous” and a cause of “ideological colonisation”, and addressed technological change, especially the emergence of artificial intelligence:
“It is essential that technological development take place in an ethical and responsible way, respecting the centrality of the human person, whose place can never be taken by an algorithm or a machine.”
Pope Francis closed his speech by noting that the Jubilee of Hope is set to begin at the end of this year, saying: “Today, perhaps more than ever, we need a Holy Year.”
He said that amid the various situations of hopelessness and suffering that countless people are living, “the Jubilee is a proclamation that God never abandons his people and constantly keeps open the doors to his Kingdom”.
Noting that jubilee years are times of grace and repentance in the Judeo-Christian tradition, the Pope said it is a time when “sins are forgiven, reconciliation prevails over injustice, and the earth can be at rest”.
He concluded: “For everyone – Christians and non-Christians alike – the Jubilee can be a time when swords are beaten into ploughshares, a time when one nation will no longer lift up sword against another, nor learn war anymore.”
Photo: Pope Francis delivers a speech during an audience with the members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See for the traditional exchange of New Year greetings in the Sala Regia at the Vatican, 7 January 2019. (Photo by Ettore FERRARI / POOL / AFP) (Photo credit should read ETTORE FERRARI/AFP via Getty Images.)
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
Areas of Catholic Herald business are still recovering post-pandemic.
However, we are reaching out to the Catholic community and readership, that has been so loyal to the Catholic Herald. Please join us on our 135 year mission by supporting us.
We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching.
We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values. Please consider donating.