Cardinal Matteo Zuppi Calls Hamas ‘the Worst Enemy of the Palestinian People’

Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, the peace envoy for Pope Francis, has referred to Hamas as “the worst enemy of the Palestinian people.”

On October 26, on the fringes of a meeting in northern Italy, the bishop of Bologna and president of the Italian bishops’ conference declared, “We really need an authoritative Palestinian leadership, we need a solution that guarantees the rights of the two sides.”

The cardinal stated that the core roots of the conflict in Israel and Palestine must be resolved, according to a local Italian television station called Telenord.

“There’s to be clarity, firmness, and no kind of indulgence towards violence, and then you have to understand the causes to resolve it,” the cardinal added.

He expressed gratitude for Pope Francis’ remarks on a third world war being fought “in pieces,” where stability is being jeopardised more and more.

“Even though they often seem unrelated to you, conflicts still have an impact on you.”