When Pope Francis visited Bethlehem at the West Bank occupied by Israel in 2014, the traditional birthplace of Jesus in a White Popemobile manufactured especially for his visit.
Now, the vehicle is becoming a mobile health clinic to treat sick and injured Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip, an initiative that Pope Francis blessed in the months before death.
Although the clinic will only serve a limited number of Palestinians in Gaza, the personal participation of Pope Francis in the project reflected its commitment to the Palestinian civilians trapped in the crossfire between Israel and Hamas or Garas or Garthilden, Control.
“Papamobile is a very specific sign that Pope Francis is grouped with all the suffering of children in Gaza, just after his death!” Cardinal Anders Arborelius or Sweden said in an email on Monday.
The idea of recreating Popemobile as a health clinic came from Caritas leaders, a Catholic organization, and Cardinal Arborelius approached Francis with her. The Swedish cardinal is a contender to become the next Pope after Francis.
Popemobile, a converted Mitsubishi, was donated by President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian authority for Francisco’s visit. He later gave the Franciscan order, and then to Caritas after Francis blessed its use in Gaza.
In November 2024, Francis representatives said they welcomed the initiative approval, according to two letters of senior Vatican officials reviewed by the New York Times.
“I am glad to convey the approach of his holiness of the project, together with the safety of his prayers for all associated with this charitable effort,” Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, a Senior Assistant from Francis, square to Cardinal Arborelius.
Popemobile will be treated with a doctor and a nurse and equipped with medical instruments to offer children basic attention, including rapid infections, suture kits and syringes, according to Anton Asfar, general secretary of Caritas Jerusalem. Caritas Jerusalem has about 100 staff members in Gaza providing help to the Palestinians.
The preparation of the vehicle for use, including the installation of explosion -proof windows, will take approximately three weeks, said Asfar. Caritas Jerusalem, he added, will soon request the approval of the Israeli authorities to deliver it to Gaza.
Cogat, the Israeli government agency responsible for coordinating the entry of enclave assistance, did not respond to a request for comments on whether Israel intended to allow Popemobile’s approval. The Israeli authorities have applied a total blockade about humanitarian supplies and commercial goods during the last two months, saying that the prohibition was an apple to press Hamas to release more than the hostages they have had since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel.
Francis was one of the most open prominent supporters of a high fire in Gaza and the delivery of humanitarian aid. He also requested the release of hostages, with their relationships and condemned the attack led by Hamas, which left about 1,200 dead people and about 250 kidnapped.
He also frequently had video calls with Christians who took refuge in a church in the city of Gaza and caught attention to children killed in Israeli air attacks.
“Yesterday, the children were bombarded,” Francis said in a December 2024 speech. “This is cruelty. This is not war.”
The Israeli army has said that his bombing campaign has pointed to the militants of Hamas, officials and weapons infrastructure, and has blamed the militant group for exposing civilians to danger by embedding themselves with them.
Popemobile will carry a message of hope and solidarity, but will also offer the necessary services, said Peter Brune, general secretary of Caritas Sweden.
“It’s symbolic,” he said, “but it’s also practical.”
Elisabetta Povledo Reports contributed from Rome.
