Pope Francis’s 2014 Popemobile Unveiled as Gaza Children’s Clinic, Awaiting Israeli Clearance

Overview

• The repurposed Mitsubishi was presented and blessed in Bethlehem by Cardinal Anders Arborelius as the “Vehicle of Hope.”
• The mobile unit is equipped for triage, diagnostics and treatment, including vaccines, sutures, infection tests, oxygen supplies and a refrigerator for medicines.
• Organizers say a medical team can conduct up to about 200 consultations per day inside the clinic.
• Caritas Jerusalem led the project with support from Caritas Sweden, spending roughly $15,000 as Palestinian mechanics completed the retrofit.
• Entry into the Gaza Strip remains pending without Israeli authorization, and Caritas says it is pursuing access through official channels with timing still uncertain.