Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday wished new Pope Leo XIV success, and called on him to pursue the “peace efforts” of his predecessor Francis.
In a statement quoted by the AFP news agency, Abbas said that he sends “best wishes for the success of Pope Leo XIV in the pursuit of his noble task and maintaining the legacy of the late Pope Francis.”
The PA chairman highlighted the “importance of the moral, religious and political role of the Vatican in the defence of just causes” and added that “the Palestinian people and their right to liberty and independence” should be at the top.
Pope Francis, who passed away in late April following an illness, several times sparked controversy when he sided with the Palestinian Arabs over Israel.
In late December, Pope Francis reiterated his condemnation of Israel’s strikes on the Gaza Strip, denouncing what he described the "cruelty" of the attacks for the second time in as many days.
"And with pain I think of Gaza, of so much cruelty, of the children being machine-gunned, of the bombings of schools and hospitals. What cruelty," the pope said to those gathered at the Vatican.
Similar remarks made by the pope a day earlier were followed by criticism from the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
A spokesperson said Pope Francis’ comments were "particularly disappointing as they are disconnected from the true and factual context of Israel's fight against jihadist terrorism -- a multi-front war that was forced upon it starting on October 7."
"Enough with the double standards and the singling out of the Jewish state and its people," the spokesperson added.
In November of 2023, Jewish groups criticized Pope Francis after he appeared to accuse both Israel and Hamas of “terrorism” in the war that started after Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel on October 7.
“This is what wars do,” the pope said at his general audience in St. Peter’s Square. “But here we have gone beyond wars. This is not war. This is terrorism.”
Rabbi David Lau, then the Chief Rabbi of Israel, later wrote a letter to Pope Francis in which he called on the Pontiff to retract his comments.
During a 2015 meeting with Abbas, the pope referred to Abbas as "an angel of peace", causing outrage on social media.
The Vatican later explained that the reference was mistranslated, and in fact was meant as encouragement for Abbas to pursue peace with Israel.