Pope Extends Dramatic Vatican Summit Invitation to Israeli, Palestinian Leaders
Sunday, 25 May 2014 08:20 AM
Francis also buoyed Palestinian hopes by openly endorsing “the State of Palestine.” At his Regina Coeli address in Bethlehem’s Manger Square, he said, “All of us – especially those placed at the service of their respective peoples – have the duty to become instruments and artisans of peace, especially by our prayers.”
In an extraordinarily powerful moment, the Pope referred to Bethlehem as “the birthplace of the Prince of Peace.”
The summit was an important moral victory for the pope, who is named after the peace-loving Francis of Assisi. Israeli-Palestinian peace talks broke down in late April, and there have been no public high-level meetings for a year.
Francis landed in Bethlehem, the cradle of Christianity, in a symbolic nod to Palestinian aspirations for their own state. He called the stalemate in peace talks "unacceptable" and stopped briefly to pray at the Israeli separation barrier surrounding this biblical West Bank town.
At the end of an open air Mass in Bethlehem's Manger Square, the pope invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli President Shimon Peres to pray with him for peace.
"I offer my home in the Vatican as a place for this encounter of prayer," he said.
The offices of the Israeli and Palestinian presidents quickly confirmed that they had accepted the invitation.
"We welcome Pope Francis' invitation to the Vatican. President Peres has supported and will continue to support all avenues to bring about peace," Peres' office said in a statement.
Abbas' spokesman, Nabil Abu Rdeneh, said the summit would take place sometime in June.
Peres, a 90-year-old Nobel Peace laureate, is set to step down over the summer, and the meeting would take place shortly before he leaves office.
Peres has been a fervent support of Mideast peace efforts, and the independent-minded Israeli president, whose job is largely ceremonial, risks upsetting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with the move.
Netanyahu has expressed anger with politicians that have reached out to Abbas at a time when the Palestinian leader is reconciling with the Islamic militant group Hamas. Israel considers Hamas a terrorist group.
Francis also made his way Sunday to preside over a Mass in the West Bank, he made a surprise stop at the wall separating it from Israel.
Photographers and onlookers rushed over to watch the pontiff close his eyes and pray against the separation barrier. Only a few bodyguards stood around Francis as he put his right hand against the gray-painted barrier, directly under a manned watchtower.
Francis stood with his eyes closed in concentration. He pressed his forehead against the wall as well for a few moments, surrounded by graffiti including a "FREE PALESTINE" scrawled in red spray paint.
When he finished, Pope Francis slowly crossed himself, then walked away.
Israel says the massive concrete wall is necessary for its security and the Palestinians say has stifled life in Bethlehem and engulfed land across the West Bank. Francis' stop, coming immediately after U.S.-brokered peace talks between the two sides broke down, carries a symbolic importance.
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