November 26, 2025 | 08:29 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A vehicle used by the late Pope Francis during his visit to Bethlehem over a decade ago has been transformed into a mobile health clinic. The popemobile is expected to soon be utilized by Catholic leaders to provide care for Palestinian children in Gaza.
This initiative was blessed by Pope Francis before his passing in April and entrusted to the Catholic organization Caritas, which oversees the vehicle conversion project inaugurated on Tuesday.
"We’re pleased that we have here a serious contribution toward the health care of children in Gaza," said Caritas Secretary General Alistair Dutton at a press conference in Bethlehem as reported by Arab News.
Francis had used the vehicle, a converted Mitsubishi pickup truck donated by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas during his visit to Bethlehem in 2014.
It is not yet clear when the mobile clinic will be able to enter Gaza. "As soon as possible," said Dutton, declining to comment further.
COGAT, the Israeli government body responsible for coordinating the entry of aid into the territory, declined to comment when asked about the request.
The open platform at the back of the vehicle, where Pope Francis once stood during his journey through Bethlehem, has now been enclosed and transformed into an area for pediatric care.
"This vehicle stands as a testimony that the world has not forgotten the children of Gaza," said Cardinal Anders Arborelius of Stockholm, who had contacted Pope Francis prior to his passing about Caritas' idea to convert the former papal vehicle into a mobile pediatric clinic.
Caritas Sweden Secretary General Peter Brune stated that the mobile clinic is capable of treating about 200 children per day.
Pope Francis' Concern for Gaza
Father Ibrahim Faltas, a representative from the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, said he hopes the vehicle will be moved to Gaza in the near future.
Pope Francis had often spoken about the genocide in Gaza and in January referred to the humanitarian situation there as "shameful." He was also known to speak on the phone with the small Catholic community in Gaza every night amid intense bombing by Israel.
"We know how much Pope Francis loved the people of the Holy Land, the people of Bethlehem, and especially the people of Gaza," said Father Faltas as quoted by Anadolu.
"The Vehicle of Hope is a great wish that we hope will reach Gaza to serve its children and families," said he said. "Today, we hope it will become a humanitarian tool to treat the wounded.”
In May, the Italian news agency ANSA reported that prior to his passing on April 21, Pope Francis had requested Caritas, the Catholic Church's charitable organization, to use one of the papal vehicles he usually used to welcome crowds to meet the medical needs of children in Gaza.
The news agency added that the vehicle, which will be equipped with a driver and a doctor, will carry equipment for diagnosis, examinations, and treatment, as well as rapid infection tests, injections, and syringes.
67 Gaza Children Killed since Ceasefire
The UN children's agency, UNICEF, said on Friday that at least 67 Palestinian children in Gaza had been killed in what it termed conflict-related incidents since the ceasefire was implemented.
The Israeli military occupying half of the Gaza territory claims to have targeted Palestinian fighters.
Since October 2023, the Israeli army has killed nearly 70,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured nearly 171,000 others in a two-year genocide in Gaza. The Israeli genocide also devastated most of the enclave's territory. The brutal attacks ceased based on a ceasefire agreement that became effective on October 10.
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