Gaza

For the parish priest of the small Latin rite community, “the war will not end soon,” now that it involves Lebanon. More than 16,000 children have died in Gaza since the beginning of the conflict out of a total death toll of 41,000. For the small Catholic community, the priority is schooling, even if it has to take place in improvised classrooms in the church itself so as not to lose the year. A day of prayer and fasting for peace will be held on 7 October. Many “only want an end to the violence.”

Today's news: Singapore's former transport minister sentenced to 12 months in prison; Chinese authorities ordered the transfer of 200 students from a Buddhist monastery in Tibet to state schools; Delhi blocks the screening of a Pakistani film, the first in over a decade; Dozens of tigers, lions and panthers die in two zoos in Vietnam from H5N1 bird flu.

Foreign migrants cannot access already overcrowded shelters and are exposed to Israeli bombs outdoors. A parish has opened its doors but dozens are crying for help every day. Migrants in Lebanon top 160,000, 65 per cent women, but they could be many more. Promises of repatriation by the Philippine government remain unfulfilled.

The invitation to the faithful from all over the world during the Opening Mass for the second session of the Synod, held this morning in St. Peter's Square. Sunday 6 the Rosary at St Mary Major to invoke from Mary the gift of peace. Last night in St Peter's the penitential celebration: ‘Let us not ask: “where are you Lord?” but: “what responsibility do we have in not stopping evil?”’.

Today's news: Delhi opposes the idea of an ‘Asian NATO’ advocated by the new Japanese premier; Seoul unveils the latest ‘monster missile’ that can hit critical infrastructure in the North; Textile factories reopen in Bangladesh after violent protests; The Myanmar regime launches population census operations ahead of vote.

The victim, Fr Gregorius Saloum, served as parish priest in Ibl al-Saqi, in the south of the country. He was seriously wounded in yesterday’s attack along with his wife and children. Kfour, a Christian village near Nabatieh, was also hit with the local church suffering heavy damages.

Hezbollah's number two announces the fight will continue. The price is already high: over a thousand dead, incalculable devastation, and a humanitarian emergency; but in reception centres and in the streets, words of resentment against the slain secretary general are rare. France and the United States (which approved Israel’s ground operation) continue to talk about a diplomatic solution that seems still far away.

Yesterday alone, more than 105 people were killed and 359 wounded in Lebanon. The southern village was also in the crosshairs, with ‘at least one confirmed victim’ in the Christian community. The target was the head of the Party of God in Sidon, and an entire building inhabited by civilians was razed to the ground to eliminate him. PM Mikati speaks of one million displaced people. Maronite Patriarch: strengthening unity among Lebanese.

Israel’s military announced the death of Hezbollah’s leader and its number three. Speaking to AsiaNews, Fr Michel Abboud paints a “very difficult" picture, saying that a Carmelite convent was just missed by an Israeli airstrike. People are fleeing "with no prospect of safety" and the displaced emergency is increasing. In an appeal "for help and support", the clergyman said that “needs are huge”.

After years away from their homeland, some Syrian refugees are forced to return because of Israel’s war against Hezbollah. In the last 48 hours, almost 30,000 people have been displaced. Lebanese authorities report that "15,600 Syrian citizens and 16,130 Lebanese citizens" have crossed the border. Syrians who return face a triple dilemma: arrest, military draft, or loss of refugee status.

As the war escalates, a surge of solidarity, empathy and compassion ties Christians and Muslims. Doctors and nurses work tirelessly to treat the victims of explosions and take in those forced to flee their homes. Faced with the "unacceptable" massacre of civilians by Israeli fighter jets, the Lebanon of "living together" exists beyond politics.

The day that marks Hamas' attack on Israel and the beginning of the war in Gaza for the cardinal is a date “symbolic of the drama we are living”. In the month of Our Lady, the invitation to pray in community for true reconciliation. The ‘vortex’ of ‘violence and hatred’ that causes ‘thousands of innocent victims’ today also finds space ‘in language and in political and social actions’.