Pope Francis: claims Israel's war against Hamas terror group is 'cruelty, not war'; Foreign Ministry: 'Cruelty is holding 100 hostages for 442 days'
Pope Francis: on Saturday criticized Israel's operations to destroy the Hamas terror group in Gaza, claiming that Israel acted with "cruelty."
During his annual Christmas address to Catholic cardinals, the Pope alleged: "Yesterday, children were bombed. This is cruelty. This is not war. I wanted to say this because it touches the heart."
Foreign Ministry: 'Israel makes extraordinary efforts to prevent harm to innocents, enough with double standards & singling out the Jewish state & its people.'
