Pope Francis met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Vatican today, their first face-to-face meeting in three years, Reuters reports.
The Vatican said the two men spoke privately for half an hour, but gave no further details.
The statement said Abbas also met with top Catholic Church diplomats to discuss “the very serious humanitarian situation in Gaza, where a ceasefire is expected to be reached and all hostages released as soon as possible.”
Abbas’ statement said he thanked the Pope “for his position in support of a just peace in Palestine based on the principle of two states.”
Abbas is in Rome for a short visit this week. He is also due to meet Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni tomorrow. The Pope, who leads the 1.4 billion-member Roman Catholic Church, has been more outspoken in recent years about Israel’s bombing of the Gaza Strip.
In November, Francis I asked the world to examine whether Israel’s campaign in Gaza constitutes genocide against the Palestinian people.