Pope Leo XIV leads the Angelus prayer in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, July 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday condemned antisemitism and affirmed the Catholic Church’s commitment to combating hatred and persecution against the Jewish people, arguing his faith demands such a stance.

Speaking in St. Pete’s Square at the Vatican for his weekly “general audience,” the pontiff acknowledged the 60th anniversary of Nostra Aetate, a declaration from the Second Vatican Council and promulgated on Oct. 28, 1965, by Pope Paul VI that called for dialogue and respect between Christianity and other religions.

Since the publication of Nostra Aetate, “all my predecessors have condemned antisemitism with clear words,” Leo said. “I too confirm that the Church does not tolerate antisemitism and fights against it, on the basis of the Gospel itself.”

“This luminous document teaches us to meet the followers of other religions not as outsiders, but as travelling companions on the path of truth; to honor differences affirming our common humanity; and to discern, in every sincere religious search, a reflection of the one divine mystery that embraces all creation,” Leo continued.

He then added that the primary focus of Nostra Aetate was toward the Jewish people, explaining that Pope John XXIII, who preceded Paul VI, intended to “re-establish the original relationship.”

Representatives from other faiths including rabbis, imams, and Buddhist monks attended Wednesday’s gathering. Leo thanked them for joining him and acknowledged that “we cannot deny that there have been misunderstandings, difficulties, and conflicts” in the previous 60 years.

“Even today, we must not allow political circumstances and the injustices of some to divert us from friendship, especially since we have achieved so much so far,” Leo said. “More than ever, our world needs our unity, our friendship and our collaboration.”

Leo added that “each one of our religions can contribute to alleviating human suffering and taking care of our common home, our planet Earth.”

The pontiff also addressed Jewish-Catholic relations specifically.

“Today we can look with gratitude at everything that has been achieved in Jewish-Catholic dialogue during these six decades,” he said. “This is due not only to human effort, but to the assistance of our God who, according to Christian conviction, is dialogue itself.”

Leo described how through Nostra Aetate, “for the first time in the history of the Church, a doctrinal treatise on the Jewish roots of Christianity was to take shape, which on a biblical and theological level would represent a point of no return.” He said that the origins of the Catholic Church “are found already among the Patriarchs, Moses, and the prophets.”

Jewish leaders have expressed optimism for interfaith relations under Leo’s leadership.

Rabbi Noam Marans, director of interreligious affairs at the American Jewish Committee (AJC), told The Algemeiner in May that “his remarks to the Jewish people have actually been extraordinary.”

At the time, just after being elected to the papacy, Leo met with Jewish leaders and other faith representatives at the Vatican. “Because of the Jewish roots of Christianity, all Christians have a special relationship with Judaism,” he said during the meeting. “Even in these difficult times, marked by conflicts and misunderstandings, it is necessary to continue the momentum of this precious dialogue of ours.”

Before the beginning of Leo’s pontificate, Israeli-Vatican relations had come under strain due to the late Pope Francis’s statements about the war to defeat Hamas in Gaza, including his suggestion that the Jewish state was committing genocide.

“According to some experts what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of a genocide. It should be carefully investigated to determine whether it fits into the technical definition formulated by jurists and international bodies,” Francis said.

In his Wednesday speech, Leo stated, “Together, we must be vigilant against the abuse of the name of God, of religion, and of dialogue itself, as well as against the dangers posed by religious fundamentalism and extremism.”

“Our spiritual and cultural differences are called to encounter one another and to live together fraternally,” the pontiff added.

Andrew Cuomo has consolidated all of Eric Adams’ Jewish support in the final days of the mayoral campaign, while Zohran Mamdani’s share of the Jewish vote has slipped, according to a new Quinnipiac poll, the last one before Tuesday’s election.

The survey of 170 likely Jewish voters — representing 18% of the overall sample of 911 voters in the general election for New York City Mayor — conducted October 23 through October 27, shows Cuomo with 60% of their support and Mamdani, a democratic socialist and strident critic of Israel, with 16%. Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee, has the support of 12%. The poll, conducted via landline and cellphone, has a reported margin of error of plus or minus 9.2%.

Among all voters, Cuomo is still trailing Mamdani 43% to 33%, according to the same poll.

In the September poll conducted before Adams dropped out of the race and endorsed Cuomo, the incumbent mayor had the support of 42% of Jewish voters, while Cuomo and Mamdani each drew about 20%.

Jews make up an estimated 10% of the general election electorate. Mamdani’s positions on Israel have roiled New York’s Jewish community — the largest outside of Israel — as he courted them for support. The Democratic nominee faced scrutiny for refusing to outright condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada,” hesitating to celebrate the Gaza ceasefire and release of the last living hostages, vowing to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York, and saying he doesn’t recognize Israel as a Jewish state. He is the first major-party nominee to pledge public support for the movement to boycott Israel.

The poll found that 75% of Jewish voters view Mamdani unfavorably, while just 15% hold a positive opinion of him. Half of Jewish voters also view Cuomo negatively, indicating that much of his support stems from opposition to Mamdani rather than personal enthusiasm. Only 39% of Jews view Cuomo favorably.

The post Cuomo dominates Jewish vote in final Quinnipiac poll before election appeared first on The Forward.

Hamas fighters on Feb. 22, 2025. Photo: Majdi Fathi via Reuters Connect

Support for Hamas appears to be rising among Palestinians, according to a new poll, with growing numbers expressing confidence in the terrorist group’s leadership and its ability to govern after the war with Israel, as ceasefire violations threaten to derail the US-backed peace plan.

On Tuesday, the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR), a West Bank-based independent research institute, released a new representative poll revealing that 60 percent of Palestinians (66 percent in the West Bank and 51 percent in Gaza) are “satisfied with Hamas’s “performance in the current war.”

Despite Hamas’s escalating crackdown and violence on Gazans, the poll found that support for the Islamist group, which has ruled the enclave for nearly two decades, has actually grown over the course of the two-year conflict — with 19 percent of respondents saying their support increased significantly and another 17 percent saying it rose slightly.

By comparison, 18 percent of Palestinians said its support for Hamas was big and has not changed, while 16 percent responded it did not support the group before and its opposition has not changed. Meanwhile, 12 percent said its support for Hamas decreased a little, and 10 percent said its support for Hamas has decreased a lot.

“The conclusion from these numbers is that the past two years have led to greater support for Hamas rather than the opposite and that this conclusion is true in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, but more so in the former,” the poll stated.

While such polling is among the best available data to gauge Palestinian public opinion, analysts have warned to view them with a dose of skepticism. In August, the Israeli military uncovered documents indicating that Hamas had been manipulating polling data from Gaza to inflate support for the Oct. 7 attacks and mask the group’s true level of backing.

Shortly after the US-backed ceasefire to halt fighting in Gaza took effect earlier this month, Hamas moved to reassert control over the war-torn enclave and consolidate its weakened position by targeting Palestinians who it labeled as “lawbreakers and collaborators with Israel.”

In recent weeks, Hamas’s brutal crackdown has escalated dramatically, sparking widespread clashes and violence as the group moves to seize weapons and eliminate any opposition.

Social media videos widely circulated online show Hamas members brutally beating Palestinians and carrying out public executions of alleged collaborators and rival militia members.

According to PCPSR’s recent poll, if legislative elections were held today, 44 percent of participating voters would back Hamas, while 30 percent would support Fatah, the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s ruling party.

In a presidential race between Khaled Meshaal, head of Hamas’s political wing, and PA President Mahmoud Abbas, 63 percent of respondents who would actually vote indicated they would support the Hamas candidate, while 27 percent would choose the PA leader.

The poll also revealed a sharp decline in Abbas’s support among Gazans, with 80 percent calling for his resignation and over half accusing him of corruption.

The results of a new Palestinian public opinion survey have just been released by the PCPSR. Here are some of the key takeaways:

Overall, 53% of Palestinians say the decision by Hamas to launch the October 7 attack was correct.

Overall satisfaction with Hamas’s… pic.twitter.com/pzhVQ2RzNI

— Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) October 28, 2025

As for the war in Gaza, 62 percent of Palestinians do not believe that US President Donald Trump’s peace plan will succeed in ending the conflict once and for all.

A majority of Palestinians — 70 percent — are also skeptical that Trump’s plan will lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state within the next five years.

The poll further revealed that more than half of Gazans (53 percent) oppose the concept of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

While 49 percent of Palestinians oppose the US-backed ceasefire deal, PCPSR’s survey found that most support Hamas’s response and its role in the ongoing negotiations.

Following phase one of the deal, Hamas is supposed to disarm and have no future leadership role in Gaza, according to Trump’s 20-point peace plan. However, disarmament and other unresolved issues will be subject to negotiations.

As part of the plan, an international task force involving regional powers is expected to oversee the ceasefire and train local security forces.

According to PCPSR’s poll, nearly 70 percent of Palestinians (almost 80 percent in the West Bank and 55 percent in Gaza) oppose Hamas’s disarmament, saying it would not help achieve peace, while 68 percent are against the deployment of an armed Arab force from regional countries within the enclave.

A majority of 53 percent also opposed the proposal to create a Palestinian committee of professionals, independent of the PA and Hamas, to manage Gaza’s internal affairs.

When asked about the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered the current war, 53 percent of Palestinians said Hamas’s decision to carry out the assault was correct.

More than 80 percent of respondents also said Hamas has not committed the atrocities depicted in videos shown by international media, including the killing of children and the rape of women in their homes.

PCPSR’s poll found that nearly half of Palestinians (49 percent in the West Bank and 30 percent in Gaza) view “armed struggle” as the most effective way to end what they call “the Israeli occupation” and achieve an independent Palestinian state. The rest chose either negotiations or “popular peaceful resistance.”