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| Netanyahu 'asked Pope to condemn Iran' | |
| (9 minutes later) | |
| Israel's right-wing new Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says he has asked Pope Benedict to condemn Iranian threats to destroy his country. | |
| He said he had asked the Pope in Nazareth to speak out against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who has called for Israel's destruction. | |
| Mr Netanyahu gave details of their conversation to Israeli TV. | |
| He was also quoted by press as saying Israel did not want a Palestinian state which might jeopardise its security. | |
| Pope Benedict has repeatedly called for a separate Palestinian state during his tour of the Holy Land, most vocally when he met Palestinian refugees on Wednesday in Bethlehem. | |
| Mr Netanyahu has not committed himself to the principle of two states, which past Israeli leaders have accepted. | Mr Netanyahu has not committed himself to the principle of two states, which past Israeli leaders have accepted. |
| The Vatican spokesman, the Rev Federico Lombardi, said only that Thursday's talks had "centred on how the peace process can be advanced". | |
| 'Make your voice loud' | |
| "I asked him, as a moral figure, to make his voice heard loud and continuously against the declarations coming from Iran of their intention to destroy Israel," Mr Netanyahu said on TV. | |
| POPE IN THE MIDDLE EAST Monday Arrives in Israel, meets President Shimon PeresTuesday Visits the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall. Celebrates Holy Mass in Josaphat ValleyWednesday Visits Bethlehem, visits refugees, meets Mahmoud AbbasThursday Mass in Nazareth, talks with Benjamin Netanyahu, meets FranciscansFriday Meets Orthodox Christian leaders, departs class="" href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/8040419.stm">Itinerary: Israel and West Bank class="" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/middle_east/03/holy_sites/html/default.stm">Guide: Jerusalem's holy sites class="" href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/8050604.stm">In pictures: Pope in Nazareth | |
| "I told him it cannot be that at the beginning of the 21st Century there is a state which says it is going to destroy the Jewish state, there is no aggressive voice being heard condemning this." | |
| Israel's prime minister said he was pleased with the Pope's response: "He said that he condemns all instances of anti-Semitism and hate against the state of Israel - against humanity as a whole, but in this case against Israel." | |
| Mr Netanyahu reportedly added that Israel wanted peace with the Palestinians but "only the kind of peace that brings security". | |
| "We don't want to dominate another people, but we also don't want a terror state backed by Iran to rise alongside us and jeopardize Israel's safety," he was quoted as saying by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. | |
| Mr Netanyahu's election this year was ill-received in the Arab world because of his hard-line views, including his opposition to returning land captured in wars. | |
| Mr Netanyahu is due in Washington on 18 May for what are being seen as crucial talks with President Barack Obama. | |
| 'Legitimate aspirations' | |
| In Bethlehem on Wednesday, the Pope delivered what correspondents say was one of his strongest expressions of support for the Palestinians, offering his backing for Palestinians' right to a "homeland". | In Bethlehem on Wednesday, the Pope delivered what correspondents say was one of his strongest expressions of support for the Palestinians, offering his backing for Palestinians' right to a "homeland". |
| The Pope celebrates Mass in Nazareth | |
| He told Palestinian refugees his heart went out to families divided by detention and restrictions on freedom of movement, a reference to Israeli military control of the West Bank. | He told Palestinian refugees his heart went out to families divided by detention and restrictions on freedom of movement, a reference to Israeli military control of the West Bank. |
| "It is understandable that you often feel frustrated," the pontiff said. | "It is understandable that you often feel frustrated," the pontiff said. |
| "Your legitimate aspirations for permanent homes, for an independent Palestinian state, remain unfulfilled." | "Your legitimate aspirations for permanent homes, for an independent Palestinian state, remain unfulfilled." |
| Pope Benedict said the largest Mass of his Holy Land tour in Nazareth on Thursday. | |
| He preached against prejudice and hatred "which kills men's souls before it kills their bodies". | He preached against prejudice and hatred "which kills men's souls before it kills their bodies". |
| At least 40,000 Christians, among them many Arabs, attended the service in the northern Israeli town where Jesus is said to have grown up. | |