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‘I pray for those families’: Pope Francis calls on Hamas to free Israeli hostages
(JTA) — In his second round of remarks since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, Pope Francis called for the release of the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas.
“I continue to follow, with pain and apprehension, what is happening in Israel and Palestine. So many people killed and others wounded,” the pope said, speaking in St. Peter’s Square at the end of his weekly audience in the Vatican.
“I pray for those families who saw a feast day turn into a day of mourning, and I ask that the hostages be immediately released,” he added.
Pope Francis also said Israel has a right to defend itself while expressing concern about its siege on Gaza.
“It is the right of those who are attacked to defend themselves,” he said. “But I am very worried by the total siege in which Palestinians live in Gaza, where there have also been many innocent victims.”
Since the Hamas attack launched Saturday, the death toll in Israel has reached 1,300, with more than 3,000 people injured, according to Israeli government figures. The Israel Defense Forces announced Thursday that it had confirmed the identities of 97 hostages taken to Gaza.
In Gaza, retaliatory airstrikes from Israel have killed 1,417 Palestinians and wounded more than 6,250, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
Few people in Israel or Gaza regard the pope, the head of the Catholic Church, as a religious leader. Still, the pope’s words are considered by many as something of a moral compass for humanity.
Pope Francis’ remarks Wednesday follow his earlier remarks Sunday, where he called for deescalation, expressed solidarity with the relatives of the victims and said he was praying for “all those who are experiencing hours of terror and anguish.”
“Terrorism and extremism do not help reach a solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians but fuel hatred, violence, revenge and cause suffering for both sides,” he said Wednesday. “The Middle East does not need war but peace, a peace built on justice, on dialogue and on the courage to be fraternal.”
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The post ‘I pray for those families’: Pope Francis calls on Hamas to free Israeli hostages appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Israeli Strike on Tehran Kills Bodyguard of Slain Hezbollah Chief
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi lays a wreath as he visits the burial site of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, on the outskirts of Beirut, Lebanon, June 3, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
A member of Lebanese armed group Hezbollah was killed in an Israeli air strike on Tehran alongside a member of an Iran-aligned Iraqi armed group, a senior Lebanese security source told Reuters and the Iraqi group said on Saturday.
The source identified the Hezbollah member as Abu Ali Khalil, who had served as a bodyguard for Hezbollah’s slain chief Hassan Nasrallah. The source said Khalil had been on a religious pilgrimage to Iraq when he met up with a member of the Kataeb Sayyed Al-Shuhada group.
They traveled together to Tehran and were both killed in an Israeli strike there, along with Khalil’s son, the senior security source said. Hezbollah has not joined in Iran’s air strikes against Israel from Lebanon.
Kataeb Sayyed Al-Shuhada published a statement confirming that both the head of its security unit and Khalil had been killed in an Israeli strike.
Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli aerial attack on Beirut’s southern suburbs in September.
Israel and Iran have been trading strikes for nine consecutive days since Israel launched attacks on Iran, saying Tehran was on the verge of developing nuclear weapons. Iran has said it does not seek nuclear weapons.
The post Israeli Strike on Tehran Kills Bodyguard of Slain Hezbollah Chief first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Financial Officer and Commander Eliminated by IDF in the Gaza Strip
Israeli soldiers operate during a ground operation in the southern Gaza Strip, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, July 3, 2024. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), in cooperation with the General Security Service (Shin Bet), announced on Friday the killing of Ibrahim Abu Shamala, a senior financial official in Hamas’ military wing.
The operation took place on June 17th in the central Gaza Strip.
Abu Shamala held several key positions, including financial officer for Hamas’ military wing and assistant to Marwan Issa, the deputy commander of Hamas’ military wing until his elimination in March 2024.
He was responsible for managing all the financial resources of Hamas’ military wing in Gaza, overseeing the planning and execution of the group’s war budget. This involved handling and smuggling millions of dollars into the Gaza Strip to fund Hamas’ military operations.
The post Hamas Financial Officer and Commander Eliminated by IDF in the Gaza Strip first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: Wary of Assassination by Israel, Khamenei Names 3 Potential Successors
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei waves during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 20, 2025. Photo: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
i24 News – Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei named three senior clerics as candidates to succeed him should he be killed, the New York Times reported on Saturday citing unnamed Iranian officials. It is understood the Ayatollah fears he could be assassinated in the coming days.
Khamenei reportedly mostly speaks with his commanders through a trusted aide now, suspending electronic communications.
Khamenei has designated three senior religious figures as candidates to replace him as well as choosing successors in the military chain of command in the likely event that additional senior officials be eliminated.
Earlier on Saturday Israel confirmed the elimination of Saeed Izadi and Bhanam Shahriari.
Shahriari, head of Iran’s Quds Force Weapons Transfer Unit, responsible for arming Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, was killed in an Israeli airstrike over 1,000 km from Israel in western Iran.
The post Report: Wary of Assassination by Israel, Khamenei Names 3 Potential Successors first appeared on Algemeiner.com.