Pontifical Mission for Palestine

The Pontifical Mission for Palestine is a special agency of the Holy See, founded by Pope Pius XII in 1949 to assist Palestinian refugees.

Today, the Pontifical Mission is the Holy See's relief and development agency for the Middle East, and serves Israel, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria. It is administered by the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, and its headquarters are located in New York City. The mission has an office in Vatican City, and field offices in Beirut, Jerusalem, and Amman. As of 2006, the president of the mission was Rev. Msgr. Archimandrite Robert L. Stern and the vice president was Rev. Msgr. Chorbishop John D. Faris.