Pope John Paul received Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie on Thursday and repeated his condemnation of the barrier Israel is building in the West Bank. It was the second time the pope condemned the barrier which is part fence and part wall and cuts deep into West Bank territory captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East War.
Last November, Israel reacted with irritation when the pope first condemned the barrier just a few days before a visit to Italy by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. The Israeli leader decided not to ask for an audience with the pope during his visit. Palestinians have called the barrier a land grab but Israel says it is to defend the Jewish state from suicide bombers.
The pope called for an end to a spiral of attacks and retaliation, an apparent appeal to Palestinians for calm. He, who made an historic visit to the Holy Land in 2000, said while signs of hope were not altogether absent, “unfortunately the sad situation in the Holy Land is a cause of suffering for all.”
John Paul II urged the international community to help all leaders in the region follow “the path of dialogue and negotiation which leads to lasting peace.”
