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Benedict fails to denounce terrorism against israel { July 28 2005 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-vatican-israel,0,5698716.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlineshttp://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-vatican-israel,0,5698716.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines
Vatican Denounces Some Israeli Retaliation
By Associated Press
July 28, 2005, 4:02 PM EDT
VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican on Thursday denounced some Israeli retaliation against past terrorism as violations of international law in an ongoing spat over Pope Benedict XVI's failure to specifically condemn attacks against Israel in recent remarks.
On Monday, the Israeli Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem summoned the Vatican envoy to express outrage over what it called Benedict's deliberate failure to mention a July 12 suicide bombing in the city of Netanya when he condemned recent terror strikes in Egypt, Britain, Turkey and Iraq.
"It's not always possible to immediately follow every attack against Israel with a public statement of condemnation and (that is) for various reasons, among them the fact that the attacks against Israel sometimes were followed by immediate Israeli reactions not always compatible with the rules of international law," said a Vatican statement, which had an unusually blistering tone.
"It would thus be impossible to condemn the first (the terror strikes) and let the second (Israeli retaliation) pass in silence," said the statement.
The Vatican did not describe any specific alleged violations of international law. Israel has in the past responded to terror attacks by raiding towns where suspected terrorists live and destroying their homes. But since a Feb. 8 cease-fire with Palestinians went into effect, Israel has halted most retaliatory operations.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry refused to comment on the Vatican's latest statement.
On Sunday, as Benedict addressed pilgrims while on vacation at his Alpine retreat, he prayed for God to stop the "murderous hand" of terrorists. He denounced as "abhorrent" the terror strikes at a Red Sea resort in Egypt, the mass transit attacks in Britain and other strikes in Iraq and Turkey.
Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said Monday that Benedict had been referring to the attacks of the last few days. He called it "surprising that one would have wanted to take the opportunity to distort the intentions of the Holy Father."
Navarro-Valls said the Netanya attack "falls under the general and unreserved condemnation of terrorism" by the pontiff.
The Vatican statement Thursday was prompted by criticism of Benedict's predecessor, John Paul II, by an Israeli Foreign Ministry official in the Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
In the paper, Nimrod Barkan, head of the ministry's World Jewish Affairs department, was quoted as saying that during John Paul's tenure, Israel "quietly" protested his failure to condemn attacks against Israel.
Referring to Monday's summoning of the Vatican envoy, Barkan was quoted as saying: "We will have to weigh other steps" if the protest is not effective.
"What could be worse than implying that it is OK to kill Jews? What am I supposed to do?" Barkan was quoted as saying.
The Vatican said Barkan was "inventing" his contention that Israel made numerous protests to the Holy See about John Paul's record.
"The interventions of John Paul II against every form of terrorism and against every single act of terrorism against Israel have been many and public," the Vatican said.
The Vatican statement also denounced Monday's complaint about Benedict as "presumptuous."
"Just as the Israeli government understandably doesn't allow itself to be told by others what it should say, neither can the Holy See accept teachings and directives by some other authority regarding the leaning and content of its own statements," the Vatican press office said.
Copyright 2005 Newsday Inc.
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