Pope Francis meets Palestine Red Crescent chief

Pope Francis met with the head of the Palestine Red Crescent, the organisation said. The pontiff held a private audience with Younis Al Khatib at the Vatican, where Mr Al Khatib briefed the Pope "on the catastrophic humanitarian conditions experienced by civilians in the Gaza Strip due to the continuation of the war for the fifth consecutive month", it said on X, formerly Twitter. Pope Francis has been vocal in calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, where almost 29,000 Palestinians have been killed since October.