Pope Francis has pleaded for an end to the Israel-Hamas conflict amid fears it could widen, and called for more humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza.
"War is always a defeat, it is a destruction of human fraternity. Brothers, stop! Stop!" Francis said after his traditional Angelus prayer in Rome's Saint Peter's Square.
"I renew my call for spaces to be opened, for humanitarian aid to continue to arrive and for hostages to be freed," the 86-year-old pontiff said.
Hamas fighters stormed into southern Israel from Gaza on October 7.
Water, food and power supply cut off
Israel's retaliatory bombing campaign has killed more than 4,650 Palestinians, mainly civilians, according to Gaza health ministry, and reduced swathes of densely populated Gaza to ruins.
Alarm has grown about a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where Israel has cut off water, food and power.
A first trickle of aid entered the besieged Gaza on Saturday, but UN officials said the 20 trucks permitted to cross were not enough given the "catastrophic" humanitarian situation for 2.4 million people.
