Abu Mazen wrote yesterday to Pope Francis thanking him for his "repeated calls to stop Israel's war" in the Gaza Strip. In a telegram of greetings to the pontiff and "to all believers" on the occasion of Easter, Abu Mazen underlined how "this holy occasion coincides with the sacred month of Ramadan" "When our oppressed people repeatedly see the appeals of His Holiness Pope Francis to stop this brutal war, they are filled with hope that he will succeed in asserting their rights," Abbas said.