Herzog was telling Francis regarding the unprecedented level of shock felt in Israel after the Hamas attack on October 7 when the pope said openly that “reaction to terror with terror is forbidden” according to the Post, citing the Israeli official.
CNN was confirmed by Vatican source on Friday that a phone call between the Israeli president and the pope took place at the end of October.
In a statement to the Washington Post about the call, the Vatican said, “The phone call took place in the context of the Holy Father’s efforts aimed at containing the gravity and scope of the conflict situation in the Holy Land.”
After a few days his phone call with Herzog, the pope spoke to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on November 2 and on October 22, United State President Joe Biden was called by Francis regarding the war.
On November 22, during a general audience in St. Peter’s Square, Francis said, “This morning, I received two delegations, one of Israelis who have relatives as hostages in Gaza and another of Palestinians who have relatives suffering in Gaza. They suffer so much, and I heard how they both suffer: wars do this, but here we have gone beyond war. This is not war; this is terrorism.”
A ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war had been called repetitively by Pope and he has regular contact with the Catholic community in Gaza.
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