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VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV called Sunday for “courage” from those forging a peace plan for Gaza, as world leaders prepared to attend a summit on ending the conflict.
“The agreement to begin the peace process has given a spark of hope in the Holy Land,” the US-born pontiff said at the end of Sunday’s Angelus prayer.
“I encourage the parties involved to courageously continue on the path toward a just and lasting peace that respects the legitimate aspirations of the Israeli and Palestinian peoples,” he said.
US President Donald Trump and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi will on Monday chair a summit in Sharm el-Sheikh which aims to end the war in the Gaza Strip.
International leaders will discuss implementing the first phase of a ceasefire, two years after Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack triggered a counter-offensive by Israel that killed more than 67,000 Palestinians.
“Two years of conflict have left death and destruction everywhere, especially in the hearts of those who have brutally lost their children, their parents, their friends, everything,” Pope Leo said.
He asked God to help “accomplish what now seems humanly impossible: to rediscover that the other is not an enemy, but a brother to look to, forgive, and offer the hope of reconciliation.”
The pope also spoke of his “sorrow” following the news of “new, violent attacks that have hit several cities and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, causing the deaths of innocent people, including children.”
“My heart goes out to the suffering population, who have lived in anguish and deprivation for years,” he said, calling once again for “an end to the violence.”
Kyiv says diplomatic efforts to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have slowed in recent months, in part because global attention has shifted to the war in Gaza.
On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Trump to broker peace in Ukraine like in “the Middle East,” saying if the US president could stop one war, “others can be stopped as well.”

ISLAMABAD: ������Ƶ and Qatar on Sunday expressed concern over border clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, urging both sides to exercise restraint and hold dialogue to lower tensions.

Afghan security forces attacked Pakistani border posts late Saturday in response to what the Taliban government called “repeated violations” of their territory and airspace.

Earlier in the week, Afghan authorities accused Pakistan of an airstrikes in the capital, Kabul, and a market in the country’s east. Pakistan has neither denied nor confirmed the strikes.

The Torkham border crossing, one of two main trade routes between the two countries, did not open on Sunday at its usual time of 8am, following the skirmishes that underscore deepening security tensions between both countries.

“The Kingdom of ������Ƶ follows with concern the tensions and clashes witnessed in the border areas between the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the State of Afghanistan,” the Saudi foreign ministry said on X.

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry expressed concern over the escalations and the potential repercussions for the security and stability of the region. It urged both sides to prioritize “dialogue, diplomacy and restraint.”

Pakistan accuses Afghan authorities of harboring members of the banned group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which Islamabad says carries out deadly attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul denies the charge and insists it does not allow its territory to be used against other countries.

The TTP, which is a separate group but is viewed by Pakistani officials as an ally of the Afghan Taliban, has been behind some of the deadliest attacks in Pakistan since late 2000s.

On Saturday, the TTP claimed responsibility for deadly attacks in multiple northwestern Pakistani districts that killed 20 security officials and three civilians this week.

“The firing by Afghan forces on civilian population is a blatant violation of international laws,” Pakistani Interior Minister Naqvi said in a statement, shared by the information ministry.