Pope praises 'significant progress' towards Gaza peace

VATICAN CITY, Oct 05: Pope Leo XIV on Sunday praised the "significant progress" towards peace in Gaza, again calling for a ceasefire in the devastated Palestinian territory and the release of Israeli hostages.

His remarks join a chorus of diplomatic statements following the Islamist group Hamas's positive response to US President Donald Trump's plan to end the Israel-Hamas war.

"In recent hours... significant progress has been made in peace negotiations, which I hope will lead to the desired outcomes as soon as possible," the American pontiff said as he concluded a mass at the Vatican.
"I call on all responsible individuals to commit to this path, to a ceasefire and to the release of hostages" in order to achieve "a just and lasting peace," he added. �"AFP