Pope will visit Aida Refugee Camp despite Israeli threats

PA: Pope will visit Aida Refugee Camp despite Israeli threats

Date: 25 / 04 / 2009 Time: 09:30
Ramallah – Ma’an –

Preparations for Pope Benedict XVI to visit Aida Refugee Camp will move forward despite Israeli occupation government attempts to interfere in the planning, officials from the Palestinian Authority said Friday.

The PA issued a statement late Friday night echoing concerns over an Israel attempting to shield the pope and the international community from seeing the oppressive and discriminatory practices meted out on the Palestinians.

Israeli occupation terrorist troops stormed Aida camp Wednesday and raided a meeting of the preparatory committee for the Papal visit. Committee members were harassed and questioned then informed that because the camp is in Area C - i.e. under Israeli civil and military control - that organizers must get a special permit to hold celebrations for the pope.

The PA brushed aside the Israeli threat, saying preparations would continue unchanged.

Condemnations came from Bethlehem and Palestinian Legislative Council members immediately following the incident, and the PA made the official decision to stay the course after meetings during the weekend.

The PA also expressed concern over the Israeli occupation government decision to prevent the Christian community in Gaza from leaving the besieged strip to travel to Bethlehem and visit the Holy Father. The West Bank government said it would hold Israel responsible for any roadblocks during the pope’s visit.

Fair Use Notice

This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.