From correspondents in Tel Aviv, Israel | May 11
POPE Benedict XVI has denounced anti-Semitism as "totally unacceptable'' and pleaded for Middle East peace as he began his first visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories.
"Sadly anti-Semitism continues to rear its ugly head in many parts of the world,'' Pope Benedict said after he touched down in Israel from Jordan on the latest leg of an eight-day Holy Land pilgrimage.
"This is totally unacceptable. Every effort must be made to combat anti-Semitism wherever it is found, and to promote respect and esteem for the members of every people, tribe, language and nation across the globe.''
The Pontiff also pleaded for Israelis and Palestinians to do everything to resolve their conflict that has caused decades of bloodshed in the land sacred to the world's three major monotheistic faiths.
"The hopes of countless men, women and children for a more secure and stable future depend on the outcome of negotiations for peace between Israelis and Palestinians,'' he said at the welcoming ceremony at Ben Gurion airport.
"I plead with all those responsible to explore every possible avenue in the search for a just resolution of the outstanding difficulties so that both people may live in peace in a homeland of their own within secure and internationally recognised borders.''
Security-obsessed Israel is laying on stringent measures for the trip under "Operation White Robe'', with tens of thousands of law enforcement officers deployed, entire sections of Jerusalem to be shut down and Israeli air space closed for the Pope's arrival.
During his five-day pilgrimage, the Pope will follow in the footsteps of Jesus and visit Jewish and Muslim holy sites, but the visit comes at a delicate time, with Israel-Vatican ties strained and the peace process stalled.
And the German-born 82-year-old Pope Benedict is not expected to receive the warmth that greeted his predecessor John Paul II on his landmark Holy Land tour nine years ago, the first since Israel and the Vatican established diplomatic ties in 1993.
Israel is angered over Pope Benedict's backing the beatification of controversial Nazi-era Pope Pius XII and lifting the excommunication of a Holocaust-denying British bishop.
His trip is a mainly pastoral visit aimed at encouraging the dwindling Christian population to stay in the Holy Land, as well as promoting peace.
The Pope will meet senior Israeli and Palestinian leaders, top Christian, Jewish and Muslim religious officials, and Palestinian refugees living in the shadow of Israel's controversial separation barrier near the spot where Jesus is believed to have been born in Bethlehem.
"I pray that your continuing presence in Israel and the Palestinian territories will bear much fruit in promoting peace and mutual respect among all the peoples who live in the lands of the Bible,'' he said on arrival.
"I come, like so many others before me, to pray at the holy places, to pray especially for peace - peace here in the Holy Land and peace throughout the world.''
Source: The Australian
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