Israel was named officially by the Vatican today for the first time since the State was founded in 1948. The recognition came via the annual, 1963, edition of the “Pontifical Yearbook,” which was issued today.
The Yearbook mentioned the “Apostolic delegate of Jerusalem and Palestine,” identifying the latter as the Vatican’s representative in “Israel, Jordan and Cyprus.” By official Vatican definition, an Apostolic delegate represents the Holy See without having diplomatic status. That form of Vatican representation holds true for all countries with which the Vatican has no diplomatic relations.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.