JAKARTA – The vehicle used by the late Pope Francis during his visit to Bethlehem, Palestine more than a decade ago has been transformed into a mobile health clinic which is expected to be used soon to provide care to Palestinian children in Gaza.
This initiative was blessed by Pope Francis before he died in April and entrusted to the Catholic organization Caritas, which oversees the vehicle conversion project which was inaugurated on Tuesday.
“We are pleased that we have a serious contribution to children’s health services in Gaza,” said Secretary General Caritas Dutton, at a news conference in Bethlehem.
Pope Francis used the vehicle, a Mitsubishi pickup truck that was modified and donated by the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, during his visit to Bethlehem in 2014.
The open platform at the back of the vehicle, where Pope Francis was standing as he traveled through Bethlehem, has now been closed and transformed into a children’s care area.
“This vehicle is proof that the world has not forgotten Gaza’s children,” said Cardinal Anders totalius of Stockholm, who had contacted Pope Francis before his death about Caritas’ idea of turning a former papal car into a mobile child clinic.
Meanwhile, Swedish Caritas Secretary-General Peter Brune said the mobile clinic was able to treat around 200 children per day.
However, it is not clear when the vehicle will enter Gaza, where the ceasefire is still officially valid even though Israeli airstrikes often occur in war-torn areas for two years.
“As soon as possible,” Dutton said, declined to comment further.
Separately, COGAT, Israel’s governing body in charge of coordinating the entry of aid into the region, declined to comment when asked about the request.
Meanwhile, Holy Land Francis Guard Advisor Pastor Ibrahim Faltas said he hoped the vehicle would be moved to Gaza in “near time,” and told Reuters the papal car converted to the clinic was ready to help children in Gaza.
Pope Francis often talked about war in Gaza and in January called the humanitarian situation there “embarrassing.”
He also called for the release of the hostages who were carried out by Palestinian militants, met with their families, and condemned Hamas’ attack on Israel that sparked war.
Pope Francis is also known to speak by telephone with the Christian community in Gaza every night during the war.
“We know how Pope Francis loves the people of the Holy Land, the people of Bethlehem, and especially the people of Gaza,” said Pastor Faltas.
The UN agency for children, UNICEF, said on Friday at least 67 children had died in what it called a conflict-related incident since the ceasefire was imposed.
Instead, the Israeli military said it was targeting militants that had become a threat to its troops occupying half of Gaza’s territory.
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