“When the humanitarian corridor to Gaza reopens, it (the popemobile) will be ready to give primary healthcare to children in Gaza,” Caritas Jerusalem said in a statement.
The vehicle will be outfitted with equipment for diagnosis, examination, and treatment. Caritas said it would have testing equipment, suture kits, syringes and needles, oxygen supply, vaccines, and a refrigerator.
“This vehicle represents the love, care and closeness shown by His Holiness for the most vulnerable, which he expressed throughout the crisis,” the secretary general of Caritas Jerusalem, Anton Asfar, said in a statement.
During Israel's war in Gaza, Francis became increasingly outspoken in his criticism of the Israeli military's harsh tactics while also demanding the return of hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7. Last year, he urged an investigation into whether Israel's war amounted to genocide -– a charge Israel vehemently denies.
He repeatedly spoke out about the plight of people in Gaza, and had a nightly ritual that he even maintained while he was in the hospital in February with pneumonia: he would call the lone Catholic church in the Gaza Strip to see how people huddled inside were coping.
Francis died April 21 at age 88.
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Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP