CAFOD is continuing to work with local partners and community groups in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon, who are facing an intense increase in violence and suffering, as the regional war continues into its fourth week.
Pope Leo XIV yesterday called the conflict a “scandal to the whole human family” and renewed his plea for an immediate ceasefire.
CAFOD’s Country Representative for the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel, Elizabeth Funnell said:
The increase in violence since the start of the regional war on 28 February, means Palestinians’ lives are increasingly restricted, with people finding it difficult to go to work, farm their land or access essential services. Meanwhile more footage has emerged over the weekend, of large groups of Israeli settlers raiding Palestinian villages, throwing stones, and setting fire to homes and vehicles. Our Israeli partner Yesh Din has told us that during the first two weeks of the conflict they recorded an average of 10 attacks on Palestinians a day.
Whole communities are being displaced from their homes and lands, by the violence. According to the UN, almost as many Palestinians have been displaced by settler attacks and restricted access in the first three months of 2026, as in the whole of 2025.
Living on borrowed time
The humanitarian situation is dire, and the need for unrestricted access to aid is still a huge issue. Elizabeth Funnell continued:
Most people in Gaza are unable to return home, five months after a ceasefire agreement was signed. Families are having to ration what food they can access where they are. For those families still able to be together, our partners tell us the majority cannot yet afford for everyone to have a meal together at the same time. One of our partners is still running a community kitchen, but say they are operating on borrowed time. Recently they told us: ‘We were able to store essential ingredients a few days before the start of the war - which is helping us sustain operations for now, but these reserves will only last a few more days.
More innocent lives are being lost in a situation that was just starting to show some small signs of hope.
As Pope Leo XIV has expressed, this is a ‘scandal’ that hurts the whole of humanity, and we cannot stay silent in the face of so much suffering. CAFOD is urging all involved to pursue an urgent end to the violence, and an immediate return towards peace.
Learn more about our work in Palestine and Israel
Notes to editors
For more information or interview requests, please contact:
Rosalind Mayfield, CAFOD Media Officer
Melissa Nethersole, CAFOD Media Officer
CAFOD’s out-of-hours media line
CAFOD is the official aid agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, and part of Caritas Internationalis, working with communities across Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America to fight poverty and injustice, including those worst hit by climate change. The agency works with people in need, regardless of race, gender, religion or nationality.
CAFOD is funded mainly by voluntary donations from people in the Catholic community of England and Wales. We also receive funding from fellow Catholic charities and development agencies, the DEC, trusts and foundations, and the UK and other governments.
