He Pope Francisco He turned 87 on Sunday, entertained by some children who helped him blow out a single candle on a white cake. The children, from a pediatric clinic in the Vatican, sang for the Pope and gave him a bouquet of sunflowers.
Later, in a traditional Christmas season event during his weekly speech in St. Peter’s Square, he blessed small statues of the Baby Jesus held by children who will place them in their nativity scenes at home.
The dozens of children present in the square shouted “Good Compleanno”happy birthday in Italian, and showed signs with the same greeting.
Francisco was born on December 17, 1936 in Buenos Aires as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, of Italian immigrant origin. The cardinals elected him as the first Pope from Latin America on March 13, 2013.
In a post by platform X, the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, He sent greetings to the Pope and thanked him for his “deep commitment to peace.”
The Pope’s accusation of Israel
Pope Francis again suggested on Sunday that Israel is using “terrorist” tactics in Gazadeploring the death of two Christian women who had taken refuge in an ecclesiastical complex.
In his weekly blessing, Francis referred to a statement about an incident that occurred on Saturday by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Catholic authority in the Holy Land.
The Patriarchate said that a Israel Defense Forces (IDF) “sniper” killed the two women, whom the Pope named as Nahida Khalil Anton and her daughter Samar, as they walked to a nunnery in the Holy Family Parish complex.
According to the Patriarchate’s statement, Seven other people were wounded by gunshots while trying to protect others.
“I continue to receive very serious and painful news from Gaza,” Francis said. “Unarmed civilians are subjected to bombings and shootings. And this happened even within the parish complex of the Holy Family, where there are no terrorists, but families, children, sick or disabled people, nuns.”
Francis said they were killed by “snipers” and also referred to the Patriarchate’s statement that a convent of nuns from the order founded by Mother Teresa was damaged by Israeli tank fire.
“Some would say ‘It’s war. It’s terrorism’ Yes, it’s war. It’s terrorism“, he claimed.
An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said the incident was still being examined and he had no immediate comment on the pope’s words.
Source: Ambito
