"Israeli Embassy Protests Vatican's Remarks on Gaza 'Carnage'"

Israel protested the Vatican's characterization of the situation in Gaza as "carnage" resulting from a disproportionate Israeli military response to Hamas, with the Israeli embassy to the Holy See calling the statement deplorable. The Vatican's Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin reiterated the need for a proportional Israeli defense, while a Vatican newspaper editorial emphasized that Israel's right to defense cannot justify the ongoing carnage in Gaza. The Israeli embassy insisted that Hamas bears all the blame for the death and destruction in the Palestinian enclave, citing the use of hospitals and schools as shields and suggesting that most of Gaza's population actively supports the group.