VATICAN CITY: Khader Qassis traveled 32 hours from the West Bank, passing military checkpoints across three countries, to join hundreds of thousands of other young Catholics in Rome for a week-long pilgrimage.
While Rome thronged with singing pilgrims, the 20-year-old from Bethlehem said he felt some guilt that he was in the cheerful Italian capital while starvation was spreading in Gaza, which has been besieged by Israel for months.
“It’s hard when there are people in Gaza dreaming just to eat and I’m traveling,” Qassis told AFP.
The Vatican is holding its “Jubilee of Youth” this week, with up to a million 18-to-35 year-olds expected to take part.
The Vatican has singled out pilgrims from conflict zones — especially Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Ukraine — that made major “sacrifices” to get to the Eternal City.
