Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rahi, condemned on Wednesday the "acts of violence committed by the Israeli armed forces against the unarmed Palestinian demonstrators on the borderline in the Gaza Strip, which led to the fall of dozens of innocent victims who did nothing but cling to their land."
Rahi relayed condolences "to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the families of the victims, as well as to the Palestinian civilian and religious leaders," and wished speedy recovery to the wounded.
He called on the international community "to put pressure on Israel to implement the international resolutions issued by the Security Council and the UN General Assembly on Jerusalem, to lift the siege imposed on two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and to end the violence against a people who does not want to abandon their homeland and demand the right for return."
"This decision, according to international resolutions, requires negotiations between the parties to the conflict before it is taken," he said, referring to the transfer of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in conjunction with the 70th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba.
The Patriarch expressed his solidarity with the Palestinian people in their suffering and in their just cause, affirming his support for the positions of the Holy See, calling for Jerusalem to be considered as an open city for all peoples and religions.
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