Jerusalem Popemobile will be set to Gaza as an ambulance for sick children

VATICAN CITY – Shortly before dying Pope Francis requested that the Popemobile, which is the one he used during his 2014 visit to Jerusalem, would be taken to Gaza to serve as a small emergency medical unit for children, it has been announced by the Vatican. 

 The car has already been given to Caritas Jerusalem, which is setting it up with the help of Caritas Sweden. Peter Brune, secretary general of Caritas Sweden said that, "with the vehicle, we will be able to reach children who do not have access [to healthcare] today, at a time when the health system in Gaza is almost completely collapsed.” The vehicle will be operated by both a driver and doctors. Inside, there will be equipment for diagnosis, examination and treatment, including rapid tests for infections, suture kits, syringes and needles, oxygen supplies, vaccines and a refrigerator for medicines. When the humanitarian corridor to Gaza reopens, it will be ready to provide basic health care to the children of Gaza.

 Francis has many Popemobiles and while they may have looked identical the one that he has donated was that which Bergoglio had used on his historic trip to the Holy Land, in 2014, almost at the beginning of his pontificate. It had remained in Bethlehem as a memento of that visit but also a bit of a symbol of peace. Now it will be equipped to bring aid to the community of Gaza to which the pontiff called every day, even when his health made everything more difficult for him. "This vehicle represents the love, care and closeness shown by His Holiness for the most vulnerable, which he expressed throughout the crisis," says Anton Asfar, secretary general of Caritas Jerusalem, to SIR, who relaunches a strong appeal for "an immediate and lasting ceasefire. Our work in Gaza is a testimony to our unwavering commitment to the health and well-being of the community, even in the most difficult conditions".

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