Pope Francis calls for 'peace in the Holy Land'

JTA - Pope Francis called for peace in the Holy Land saying the violence between Israel and its Arab neighbors “does not spare the defenseless.”

Francis’ Easter address, known as Urbi et Orbi, or to the city and the world, was delivered Sunday from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, two days after at least 17 people were killed and hundreds injured on the border between Israel and Gaza.

The pope called for “reconciliation for the Holy Land,” which he said was “experiencing in these days the wounds of ongoing conflict that do not spare the defenseless.”

Francis also prayed for peace for “the entire world, beginning with the beloved and long-suffering land of Syria, whose people are worn down by an apparently endless war.”