Pope addresses Israel genocide comments, says they were taken out of context

Pope Francis has caused some controversy with his recent suggestion that Israel should be investigated for charges of genocide.

During an interfaith gathering at the Vatican on Monday, the pope was challenged by Rabbi Yosef Garmon, a former IDF tank commander in the 9026 Battalion, who served in Gaza and northern Israel.

The rabbi urged Pope Francis, "Look at my fellow soldiers who died from our unit." He continued, "They died because we entered Gaza only to search for the terrorists and to protect the innocent. Israel also protects the Palestinians and liberates them from Hamas. Any other country would bomb them from the air and eliminate this threat in one day.” 

Addressing the definition of genocide as the deliberate eradication of a people, he said, “Israel has the capability to end the war in one day and erase Gaza entirely, but it did not act that way and risked its soldiers to prevent the killing of innocents. You should investigate those who call to investigate Israel - not the other way around."

The pope said the comments made in his new book had been taken out of context, saying, “I did not claim that Israel committed genocide, Hamas should no longer exist in the world.”

He told the delegation of Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist and Druze representatives, "I was shown materials from the war, and I said that if this is true, then it needs to be investigated. I understand what is happening in Gaza. I think Hamas should no longer exist in the world, but the war should also not be prolonged.”

According to Ynet, Pope Francis said, “Palestinians continuously send him materials about the war," but that Israel “does not provide him with documentation, or draw attention to it.” 

Rabbi Garmon frequently advocates for Israel, having been raised in Jerusalem. He later moved to Guatemala where he held the position of chief rabbi. Today, he heads up The Humanitarian Coalition, which started in Guatemala and now works throughout Latin America. In addition to promoting humanitarian projects that express love in action, the rabbi shares a common geographical background with the Pope who is originally from Argentina.

The pope has met with families of Israelis hostages and those released from captivity, along with others who had been severely injured, and emphasized that statements had been taken out of context. He said that people of other faiths are threatened by radicalism and that “if it prevails, everyone loses.” 

Representatives from Israel’s Druze community were also present at the delegation. The religious leaders from the Druze town of Hurfeish added their perspective, telling the pope about how Druze communities in the Golan have been under constant fire from Hezbollah terrorists, and reminded him that 12 children from Majdal Shams were murdered in a Hezbollah rocket attack in July.