Opening remarks by Rev. Msgr. Daniel Pacho, Undersecretary for the Holy See’s Multilateral Sector, Section for Relations with States and International Organizations of the Secretariat of State, at the High-Level Event: “Respecting Sacred Grounds: Ensuring Protection of Places of Worship during Armed Conflicts as a Legal Obligation, a Preventive Measure, and a Foundation for Peace”
Geneva, 25 February 2026
Mr. Vice-President,
Mr. First Deputy Minister,
Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
First of all, I would like to thank the Holy See Mission in Geneva for organizing, together with the International Committee of the Red Cross, this event on: “Respecting Sacred Grounds: Ensuring Protection of Places of Worship during Armed Conflicts as a Legal Obligation, a Preventive Measure, and a Foundation for Peace”. Our gratitude goes to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and to Kazakhstan for co-sponsoring this initiative. This is all the more significant given that both are founding States of the ICRC’s Global Initiative to Galvanize Political Commitment to International Humanitarian Law (IHL).
Amidst the persisting climate of conflicts and the trail of suffering and devastation they cause, the Holy See has decided to adhere to the aforementioned Global Initiative. It is precisely in the current troubling context that the rules and principles of IHL must be respected. They are not just a legal code; they are an ethical charter inspired by the consciences of peoples in order to safeguard, also in armed conflict, a minimum threshold of the principles of humanity and to limit suffering, promoting the God-given dignity of every human being. Yet nowadays “it is troubling to see that the force of international law and humanitarian law seems no longer to be binding, replaced by the alleged right to coerce others”.[1]
Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
This event has been organized because of the commitment to the protection of sacred places, whether they be churches, mosques, synagogues, temples or other places of worship. These sites are the expression of humanity’s highest beliefs and hopes. Article 53 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions (1977, relating to international armed conflicts) addresses the “Protection of cultural objects and places of worship” and explicitly prohibits “[committing] any acts of hostility directed against historic monuments, works of art, or places of worship which constitute the cultural or spiritual heritage of peoples; [using] such objects in support of the military effort; and [making] such objects the target of reprisals”.
Yet, despite such commendable legal protections, no conflict spares places of worship. Although the principle of distinction obliges all parties to distinguish between military and civilian objects, attacks on sacred places are often justified as “collateral damage”, carried out under the guise of “military necessity”. The thousands of places of worship that have been damaged or destroyed through deliberate attacks, often during moments of prayer, must not be underestimated. Such attacks cause numerous victims among the followers of religions, violating IHL and directly interfering with the freedom of religion or belief, worship, and the practice of one’s faith, both individually and collectively. It should also be noted that places of worship often serve as havens where assistance is provided for wounded and displaced civilians, making attacks on such locations all the more deplorable.
When sacred ground becomes part of the battlefield, it is not merely bricks and mortar that are destroyed, but it is also the manifestation and reminder of the transcendent nature of the human person that comes under attack. The deliberate destruction of places of worship causes far more than material loss; it strikes at the very “soul” of a people and disfigures the human dignity, both of the attacker and of the victim.
As with any violation of IHL, the wounds that the destruction of places of worship provokes hinder the process of reconciliation and peace. Disrespect for what people hold most sacred, unless authentic reconciliation is sought, will always generate and fuel new cycles of hatred and violence.
Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
The utter rejection of such atrocities and violations that contravene the fundamental principles of IHL must be comprehensive and systematic in order to bring an end to war and to create an environment conducive to a culture of respect and peace. It is therefore indispensable that the recommendations to be adopted within the framework of the Global Initiative also explicitly reaffirm the urgent need to respect places of worship during conflicts, in order more fully to promote human dignity in all its dimensions, including the most intimate and profound one - the transcendent dimension. I am confident that this event will contribute to this goal.
In conclusion, I would like to recall the words Pope Leo XIV recently addressed to the members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See: “Humanitarian law […] must always prevail over the ambitions of belligerents, in order to mitigate the devastating effects of war, also with a view to reconstruction. […] The Holy See […] hopes that the international community will remember that the protection of the principle of the inviolability of human dignity and the sanctity of life always counts for more than any mere national interest.”[2]
Thank you.