In a telephone conversation with President Mahmoud Abbas of the State of Palestine on Monday, Pope Leo XIV repeated his appeal for international humanitarian law to be fully respected.

According to the Vatican, the conversation between the two leaders spoke about recent developments in the conflict in the Gaza Strip and violence in the West Bank.

Leo emphasizing in particular the obligation to protect civilians and sacred places, the prohibition of the indiscriminate use of force and of the forced transfer of the population.

“Given the tragic humanitarian situation, emphasis was placed on the urgent need to provide assistance to those most vulnerable to the consequences of the conflict and to allow the adequate entry of humanitarian aid,” the statement said.

On Sunday, Abbas sent a message to world leaders and international organizations saying it is now “critical and difficult moment for our Palestinian people,” saying it is a result of Israel’s activities since the present conflict began nearly two years ago.

The Gaza war broke out following an Oct. 7, 2023, surprise attack by Hamas militants that left 1,200 Israelis dead and more than 250 taken as hostages.

Israel immediately launched a retaliatory offensive in Gaza to oust Hamas from leadership, with the subsequent conflict resulting in the deaths of over 70,000 people in Gaza, according to Palestinian estimates.

A peace deal made earlier this year has broken down, and Israel has increased its attacks on Gaza, killing thousands of people, most of them civilians.

In his message to world leaders, Abbas accused Israel of committing “crimes of genocide, killing, destruction, and starvation against our people in Gaza without deterrence or accountability.”

“These actions undermine the two-state solution and tighten the noose on the Palestinian people and their national institutions, aiming to prevent the realization of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state. They also destroy peace-making efforts, leaving our region and the world in a state of tension and instability,” the Palestinian leader said.

Since 2007, Gaza has not been under the control of the Palestinian Authority, but has been run by Hamas, which refuses to recognize the state of Israel. However, under international law, it is still technically part of Palestine.

In his message, Abbas the “urgent priority” of the State of Palestine is an immediate and permanent ceasefire, to secure the release of hostages and prisoners, and to ensure the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid, particularly food and medical supplies, to the Gaza Strip.

“This must be accompanied by the complete withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from the Strip, enabling the State of Palestine to assume full responsibilities there, leading to a comprehensive truce, the cessation of settler crimes and ongoing assaults on Islamic and Christian holy sites, and the launch of a political process to end the occupation based on international legitimacy resolutions, the Arab Peace Initiative, and the adoption of a peace plan with international guarantees and a defined timetable during the upcoming International Peace Conference in New York,” he said.

His message came just days after an Israeli tank fired on the only Catholic church in Gaza, the Parish of the Holy Family, which drew international condemnation. Israel claims the attack was a mistake, and has promised an investigation of the event.

However, Alistair Dutton, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis, has said the Israeli government is creating attacks that are “hurting civilian people day in and day out” in Gaza.

“We need the bombardment and the atrocities to stop immediately,” he told Vatican News.

Abbas said the “most pressing issue at this moment” is to stop the killings in the Gaza Strip, which he called “genocide,” and to end the displacement and starvation of the Palestinians in the territory.

“This situation is unbearable and cannot be tolerated. It requires your urgent intervention and that of the international community to pressure Israel to allow the immediate entry of food and medical supplies to save thousands of children, women, and elderly people who are dying of hunger due to the blockade and the prevention of humanitarian aid,” he said.

“At the same time that Gaza’s children, women, and elderly are being starved and cold-bloodedly killed at aid centers, the Palestinian National Authority is being subjected to an unprecedented financial and economic siege due to the withholding of Palestinian tax revenues, which have now exceeded two billion dollars, by the Israeli government. This is a clear attempt to undermine the work of the Palestinian government and paralyze its ability to fulfill its obligations to our people,” Abbas continued.

The president of Palestine said he was urging world leaders to pressure the Israeli government “to end the policy of starvation” and to ensure the immediate entry of humanitarian aid, as well as to release Palestinian tax revenues.

“It is equally important to compel the occupying power to end settler terrorism, halt the destruction and displacement of refugee camps, stop all forms of aggression in the West Bank, cease settlement expansion and land annexation attempts, and put an end to the attacks on Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, Hebron, Taybeh, and Gaza,” he said.

On Saturday, Abbas said elections for the Palestinian National Council — an internal body of the Palestine Liberation Organization — would be held by the end of 2025, the first time elections have been held since 2006. He said this would strengthen the authority of the State of Palestine.

In the conversation between Pope Leo and Abbas, the pontiff spoke about the Comprehensive Agreement between the Holy See and the State of Palestine, which was signed on June 26, 2015, and entered into force on January 2, 2016.

An agreement between the Holy See and Israel was made in 1993. Leo spoke to to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday evening, the day after the attack on the church in Gaza.

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