Pope Francis has declared that the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas has morphed from war to terrorism. The Pope met with relatives of Israeli hostages in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners in Israel and heard directly how both sides are suffering in the conflict. He begged for peace so both sides would not be consumed with "passions, which, in the end, kill everyone. This is what wars do, but here we have gone beyond wars. This is not a war. This is terrorism."
Israel and Hamas announced a deal allowing at least 50 hostages and scores of Palestinian prisoners to be freed while offering besieged Gaza residents a four-day truce after weeks of all-out war. Palestinian militants are set to release 50 women and children kidnapped during their deadly October 7 raids into southern Israel. The war started after Hamas gunmen launched the worst attack in Israel's history, leaving around 1,200 dead. Israel declared war on Hamas, vowing to bring the hostages home and destroy the militant group.