Since the MSM's recap of this statement is usually incomplete, here's what the Pope has said:
In particular, the Supreme Pontiff hopes that prayers will be raised to the Lord for an immediate cease-fire between the sides, for humanitarian corridors to be opened in order to bring help to the suffering peoples, and for reasonable and responsible negotiations to begin to put an end to objective situations of injustice that exist in that region, as already indicated by Pope Benedict XVI at the Angelus last Sunday, July 16.
In reality, the Lebanese have the right to see the integrity and sovereignty of their country respected, the Israelis, the right to live in peace in their state, and the Palestinians have the right to have their own free and sovereign homeland.
At this sorrowful moment, His Holiness also makes an appeal to charitable organizations to help all the people struck by this pitiless conflict.
Notice the phrase about the Palestinians? That they "have the right to have their own free and sovereign homeland"?
The question of a Palestinian homeland generally gets one response: "They don't HAVE one, and they NEVER had one." So much for the Palestinians. In fact, that group has been kicked around by both the Arabs and the Israelis for well over 50 years, and were used by a Nazi-admiring Yasser Arafat as a money-tree. He pretended to "lead" them and the West pretended that he was their "leader," sending bundles of cash which wound up in his Swiss bank accounts.
Meantime, the Palestinians remained stateless; as a result, they are unable to build an economy; thus, the young and bright ones (particularly the Catholics and Christians) are leaving. To some degree, the same thing is happening in Lebanon--there is a noticeable exodus of Catholics and Christians.
Now you know why the Pope keeps mentioning a Palestinian "homeland."
For further, see this Israeli journalist's take on Gaza.
If I'm not mistaken, the "Palestinian" people are mainly Jordanians who were living in the region when it was made into Israel in 1948. The area was a trash heap that no one in particular wanted. That is, until it was made the Jewish State. Thanks for posting the whole statement.
ReplyDeleteExactly, the Palestinian homeland is called Jordan. When the British sliced up their protectorate the large chunk became Jordan and the tiny piece Israel.
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