Milan, 31 July (LaPresse) – The Holy See is convinced that ‘the two-state solution, based on secure and internationally recognised borders, is the only viable and equitable path towards a just and lasting peace’. This was stated by Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, permanent observer for the Vatican to the UN, during the high-level conference of the United Nations, reported by Vatican media, on the “peaceful resolution of the Palestinian question and the implementation of the two-state solution”, promoted by France and Saudi Arabia and concluded on 30 July in New York. According to Archbishop Caccia, terrorism can never be justified, but ‘the right to self-defence must be exercised within the traditional limits of necessity and proportionality’.During his speech, Archbishop Caccia urgently called for “an immediate ceasefire, the release of all Israeli hostages, the return of the bodies of the deceased, the protection of all Palestinian civilians in accordance with international humanitarian law and unhindered access to humanitarian aid”, reiterating his condemnation of the attack on 7 October 2023. The Holy See, in the words of Caccia, ‘remains gravely concerned about the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip,’ calling on the international community to respond immediately and in a coordinated manner to the ‘mass displacement of families,’ the ‘collapse of essential services,’ the ‘growing famine’ and the ‘widespread deprivation’ that ‘shock the conscience of humanity.’
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