Rome: Pope Leo X, the head of the Catholic Church, called on Sunday for an end to violence against Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, amid escalating attacks by extremist settlers and the imposition of a siege on the village of Qusra in the area.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, Israeli settlers surrounded several homes after cutting off their water and electricity, in what human rights groups described as a coordinated effort to seize more land and further encroach on territory Palestinians seek for their future state.

Pope Leo X stated, “I renew my appeal for an end to the repeated acts of violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank,” without mentioning specific clashes or attacks. Speaking at his residence in Castel Gandolfo near Rome, the Pope added, “I urgently ask the international community to work towards advancing the two-state solution for a just and lasting peace.”

The Vatican has long supported the idea of a future Palestinian state, which more than 150 of the 193 UN member states have recognized as encompassing the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Under Israel’s right-wing coalition government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, settlement construction in the West Bank has expanded, a move Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says is aimed at eliminating the possibility of a Palestinian state.

The UN and most governments consider the settlements illegal under international law regarding military occupation. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 war but maintains that the territory is disputed, not occupied.