Bishop McKeown calls for an end to ‘humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza’

“From all over Ireland, parishioners are reporting their horror and helplessness on seeing images of death and communal destruction in Gaza.

"Exhausted mothers can no longer nourish their young, children are dying of malnutrition, while aid lorries full of supplies are being refused entry into the territory, or are not safely arriving at their destination.

“We in Ireland must pray for a change of heart. Throughout the month of June – the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus – we call on everyone to pray for an outpouring of the compassion of God on a heartless world,” a statement from the Irish Bishops’ Conference stated.

The communiqué was issued after a meeting of the conference’s Standing Committee at which the Holy Land, Ukraine and Sudan were discussed.

“To see the relentless bombardment of civilian areas, the deliberate withholding of food from the starving, as well as the callous holding of hostages, it appears that humanity has lost its heart. In the face of these horrors, we invite everyone to turn to the heart of Jesus throughout the month of June by praying for the renewal of heart that our world so desperately needs.

“We echo Pope Leo XIV’s recent appeal to allow into Gaza ‘the entry of dignified humanitarian aid and to put an end to the hostilities, whose heartbreaking price is paid by the children, elderly, and the sick,’” they stated.