In response to questions from journalists, the Director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni, has stated:

“I can confirm that in the morning of Wednesday 22 November, on the sidelines of the General Audience, Pope Francis will meet in separate moments a group of relatives of Israelis held hostage in Gaza, and a group of family members of Palestinians who are suffering as a result of the conflict in Gaza.

With these meetings, of an exclusively humanitarian nature, Pope Francis wishes to manifest his spiritual closeness to the sufferings of each one, because, as he affirmed at the end of the recitation of the Angelus last Sunday, 'Every human being, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, of any people or religion, every human being is sacred, is precious in the eyes of God and has the right to live in peace'".