Mahmoud Abbas invited Pope Benedict XVI to visit Jerusalem. “You will be very welcome in Jerusalem and the holy places,” the Palestinian Authority president told Benedict at the end of a 20-minute meeting in the Vatican on Saturday, although the Palestinian Authority has no control over Jerusalem, which is Israel’s capital. The Palestinian Authority wants eastern Jerusalem as its future capital. The pope, who has said he is considering Israeli invitations to visit Jerusalem and other parts of Israel, thanked Abbas. Benedict was also presented with a Palestinian Authority passport and an invitation to visit Bethlehem in the West Bank.
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