(ANSA) - ROME, NOV 17 - Israel's embassy to the Holy See on Sunday responded to Pope Francis's call for a probe into possible Israeli 'genocide' in Gaza by saying that the Hamas attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023 had been "genocidal slaughter" and that Tel Aviv had a right to defend itself from such onslaughts by wiping out the threat from the Islamist militants.
    "On October 7, 2023, there was a genocidal massacre of Israeli citizens and since then Israel has exercised its right to self-defense against attempts from seven different fronts to kill its citizens.
    "Any attempt to call this self-defense by any other name means isolating the Jewish State", the embassy said on X.
    Francis calls for an international investigation into possible genocide in Gaza in a book coming out Tuesday, excerpts of which were published in La Stampa daily Sunday. (ANSA).