A parish priest in Chile appeared to justify the terror attack in Israel on Oct. 7, when Hamas-led forces slaughtered 1,400 people in Israeli border communities. More than 260 of the victims were pursued by the terrorists and gunned down at a music festival. Hundreds more were killed as they were asleep in their homes, Israeli officials have said.
Georges Abed, a Syrian-born parish priest of San Jorge Cathedral in the Patronato neighborhood in central Santiago, Chile, said Gaza has suffered more than 75 years of injustice and the Oct. 7 attack needs to be seen in that context, Reuters reported.
"If you want to ask me about Gaza and ask about the (Hamas) massacre, the blood, the killings, it's like looking at a painting from a few inches away," Abed said.
The priest added: "You need to look at it from further back to see the full picture. We're talking about an issue that's more than 75 years old."
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Chile recalled its ambassador in Tel Aviv last week and its president, Gabriel Boric, has accused Israel of violating international law. He also addressed the Israel-Hamas conflict after a meeting with President Biden at the White House last week.
"There's no doubt we can say the response has been disproportionate and is violating international humanitarian law," Boric said after the meeting.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Boric said the Israeli military operation "at this stage acts as a collective punishment to the civilian population in Gaza."
The pastor of the Eastern Orthodox Church said his community has many Palestinians.
"Our community lives peacefully here," Abed said, per Reuters. "They're in the right, the left, the government, universities, industry, commerce, banks, the army and the Carabineros (police force)."
In a recent mass, Abed also invited members from Chile's Muslim community. Arabic headdresses, including keffiyehs and hijabs as well as Palestinian flags, were sprinkled throughout the pews.
Chile's Palestinian community is the largest outside the Middle East as the country is now estimated to have more than half a million Palestinians.
Reuters contributed to this report.
