Gennaro warns Pope Leo that Palestinian leaders seek Israel’s destruction, not peaceful coexistence or compromise.
New York City Council Member Jim Gennaro delivered a blistering rebuttal to Pope Leo’s recent call for a two-state solution, arguing that the Pontiff’s noble intentions ignore the harsh, decades-long reality of Palestinian rejectionism. Speaking as both a devoted Catholic and a representative of a large Catholic community in Queens, Gennaro said he respects the Pope deeply—but insisted that moral aspiration must not replace historical truth.
Gennaro emphasized that Israel has repeatedly reached for peace—offering statehood plans at Camp David in 2000, during the 2007 Annapolis process, and in multiple negotiations since. Each time, Palestinian leadership not only rejected the offers but reaffirmed a maximalist ideology that denies Israel’s right to exist. He argued that many Palestinians still cling to the “river to the sea” doctrine, a worldview that leaves no room for Jewish sovereignty in any borders.
Highlighting the long pattern of refusal, Gennaro said the Palestinians have never truly pursued a two-state arrangement, because accepting one would require acknowledging the Jewish state. In his view, Palestinian leaders—supported by radical elements across the Arab world—have made clear through their rhetoric and actions that their priority is the destruction of Israel, not peaceful coexistence or compromise.
Turning to Gaza, he reminded the public that Israel’s 2005 withdrawal was met not with peace but with terror. Instead of building a functioning society, Hamas transformed Gaza into a militarized launchpad for rockets, tunnels, and, ultimately, the atrocities of October 7th. Gennaro warned that failing to acknowledge this reality only emboldens groups whose explicit mission is the murder of Jews, not the creation of a peaceful Palestinian state.
He concluded by urging Pope Leo to direct his moral authority toward the true obstacle to peace: the Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel’s legitimacy and the global willingness to equate Israel’s self-defense with terror. True justice, he argued, requires drawing a clear line between Israel’s right to exist and the genocidal ambitions of Hamas. Anything less, he said, fuels antisemitism and prolongs suffering on all sides.
