Pope Leo XIV is currently evaluating an invitation by U.S. President Donald Trump to join his “Board of Peace,” an international body chaired by the president to oversee the governance and reconstruction of Gaza, the Vatican secretary of state said.
Speaking with journalists after an event at the Franciscan-run Pontifical University Antonianum in Rome Jan. 21, Cardinal Pietro Parolin confirmed that Vatican City State was among the countries that received an invitation to join the board.
“I believe I read that Italy is also considering whether or not to join,” Cardinal Parolin said, according to Avvenire, the newspaper of the Italian bishops’ conference. “We too have received this invitation: the pope has received the invitation, and we are considering what to do; we are looking into it.”
The board, which was formally announced by the White House Jan. 16, will serve as an oversight mechanism for the second phase of the Trump administration’s “Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict.”
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