Some Gaza Christians Get Israeli Permits to Attend Papal Mass
528 views · Published 13 May 2009 · 2:57 · Indexed 20 September 2026
Channel: Voice of America · 2009 · News & Politics
Pope Benedict is in Israel as part of his pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Hundreds of Christians in the Gaza Strip applied for Israeli permits to leave the territory to attend a Papal Mass. The IDF, Israel's military, says 150 have received permits to travel through Israel either to Jerusalem or Bethlehem, in the occupied territories, to attend a service. After the recent conflict in Gaza, some Palestinians are calling on the Pope to travel to the Gaza Strip to observe the situation there firsthand.
