Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Pays Tribute at the Tomb of Pope Francis
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began his visit to Rome on Wednesday with a moment of reflection at the tomb of the late Pope Francis inside the Basilica of St. Mary Major. Arriving in the afternoon, the President was accompanied by Father Ibrahim Faltas, former vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land. The two entered the Basilica at 4:30 p.m. and spent about fifteen minutes in prayer and quiet contemplation.
During the visit, President Abbas laid a floral tribute upon the marble tomb, which bears the simple inscription Franciscus. Speaking briefly to journalists gathered outside the church, he said, “I came to see Pope Francis because I cannot forget what he did for Palestine and for the Palestinian people. I cannot forget that he recognized Palestine without anyone having to ask him to do so.”
The visit came on the eve of President Abbas’s scheduled audience with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican, taking place nearly a month after the ceasefire agreement came into effect in the Gaza Strip.
President Abbas has maintained a close relationship with the Vatican and with Pope Francis over the years. In 2014, he participated in a historic interfaith prayer meeting in the Vatican Gardens alongside Pope Francis and then-Israeli President Shimon Peres. During that event, the three leaders planted an olive tree, a living symbol of peace and hope, while Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I joined in prayer.
Since then, Abbas and Pope Francis met on several occasions and stayed in frequent contact, particularly during periods of heightened tension in the Holy Land. After the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack and Israel’s military response in Gaza, the two spoke multiple times. Their most recent meeting took place on December 12, 2024, where they discussed the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and reaffirmed that the two-state solution remains the only viable path to lasting peace.
In July 2025, President Abbas also held a phone conversation with Pope Leo XIV, during which they discussed developments in Gaza and the escalating violence in the West Bank. According to the Holy See Press Office, Pope Leo reiterated the importance of upholding international humanitarian law, protecting civilians and sacred sites, and ending the indiscriminate use of force. He also recalled the tenth anniversary of the Comprehensive Agreement between the Holy See and the State of Palestine, signed in June 2015 and in effect since January 2016.
As President Abbas prepares for his meeting with Pope Leo XIV, his visit to the tomb of Pope Francis serves as both a personal act of remembrance and a symbolic reaffirmation of the enduring relationship between Palestine and the Holy See, one rooted in dialogue, peace, and mutual respect.
