Palestinian population 'must remain in its land’: Vatican

GENEVA

The secretary of state of the Holy See said Thursday that the Palestinian population "must remain in its land."

Pietro Parolin rejected any forced deportations in remarks at a summit between Italy and the Holy See, according to the ANSA news agency.

"The Palestinian population must remain in its land. This is one of the fundamental points of the Holy See: no deportations," Parolin said in response to reporters.

"No deportations also because someone on the Italian side has underlined how this would create tension in the area," he added.

His remarks were in response to US President Donald Trump's controversial plan to "take over" the Gaza Strip and forcibly resettle the Palestinian population in other countries.