” “In the war between Israel and Lebanon, not to mention Gaza, "there’s someone missing: the international community", namely "Europe". This was stated to SIR Europa by father Ricardo Bustos, the custodian of the basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, the city in Galilee where the first Arab-Israeli victims of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah have been killed. "The Old Continent said the Franciscan priest , of the great Christian tradition, the one that is geographically closest to the Middle East and its Holy Places, can hardly make itself be heard. Were it not for the solidarity of the many Italian, Spanish, French, German NGOs, to mention just a few, we might say Europe has deserted the Holy Land. Divided by clashing interests, incapable of a shared foreign policy, the EU member states are lagging behind in this crisis. This is not about taking sides with the Israelis or the Palestinians, this is about speaking up against the war. When there’s abuse and bloodshed, there’s no distinction of nationality, religion or ethnic group. There are people here who suffer and who must be helped". "Europe he concluded has experienced two world wars on its soil and more recently the Balkan war, and is well aware of the havoc these wars create among people. We are asking Europe to seriously commit itself. We need everyone to take action, especially the European Catholics and Christians, to push their governments for negotiations, the only way to avoid conflicts".” “
