Only a few days have passed since the announcement of a ceasefire, only a few hours since the beginning of the ceasefire. Since the morning of Sunday, January 19, 2025, the guns have been silent in Gaza. The mere announcement that the war could be suspended for six weeks has made the people of Gaza rejoice. I wanted to write 'has made the joy explode', but any term that evokes war has a sad and violent sound. And after the announcement of the possible ceasefire, the feeling of joy was mixed with sadness, hope was overshadowed by grief.

Those who survived in Gaza, the displaced, live (and this is already a lot!) in a difficult situation. They have lost everything, they have lost the security of their homes and their loved ones, and they have lost the normality of everyday life. The joy of the ceasefire is also a joy of the lives saved. But the thought immediately goes to the loved ones who lost their lives because of the war. And everything becomes even sadder when you do not know where to go to look for those bodies.

I heard some children, who are happy about the ceasefire, express simple and essential wishes. A little girl wants to go back to her room and find her things in the closet: but will she find her home or just a pile of rubble? A group of children want to run through the streets of the neighborhood and play football again without fear of bombings. A mother with a little boy in her arms is happy because they have spent the first night without being woken up by the noise of the bombs and the sky lit up by explosions. A young father of three said he had been waiting eagerly for the announcement of the ceasefire because for the past 15 months he had been constantly afraid of losing one of his loved ones. Some university students spoke bitterly about the war that had interrupted their studies and their future, but immediately afterwards they almost apologized, thinking of the many of their peers who had lost their lives and will no longer have a present or a future.

The stories of life in Gaza are stories of great suffering.

Through mediation and dialogue, a first result was achieved. But after just a few hours, the hope of beginning peaceful coexistence gave way to news of violence from the West Bank. The good intentions have failed and have given way to violence and the use of weapons not far from where they had just left off after 15 months of war. I still want to believe those who speak of peace; I want to trust those who promise solutions. But recent events and announcements do not promise anything good.

I pray that politics always takes responsibility for people and has a genuine interest in the common good. A politics that follows the path of justice has the depth of truth and has the taste of peace. It is a policy that acts as an instrument of life and respect for life. It is a policy that is not only concerned with occupying positions of power, but promotes the well-being and development of peoples.

Pope Francis often reminds us that God always forgives everything. May God also forgive those who use their power to kill and not to save lives.