Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin on Wednesday urged warring parties in the Middle East to accept “peace proposals,” saying the region, including Lebanon, “doesn’t need war.” “The Middle East is going through a critical moment,” Parolin told a press conference in Beirut during a days-long visit to Lebanon.
“(The Holy See) asks for peace proposals to be welcomed, so that fighting stops on each side, so hostages in Gaza are released, so that the necessary aid arrives unhindered to the Palestinian population,” he said.
“Lebanon, the Middle East, the whole world certainly doesn’t need war,” the cardinal added. United States President Joe Biden on May 31 laid out a plan for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages, but the conflict has continued to rage, with fears growing of a wider regional war drawing in Lebanese Hamas ally, Hezbollah.
For his part, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati urged against linking “Lebanon’s stability and interests to extremely complicated conflicts and never-ending wars.”
During his visit, Parolin has met political and religious leaders, and on Wednesday, he declared that the Vatican was “seriously concerned” about Lebanon’s presidential vacuum. “Electing a head of state is an urgent and absolute necessity,” he stated, expressing the hope that “the political parties will be able to find a solution without delay.”
