POPE TO VISIT TURKEY

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.10.2006 18:15 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Vatican on Monday officially confirmed that Pope
Benedict XVI will visit Turkey at the end of November, a trip that
had been put into doubt by Muslim anger over controversial comments
he made about Islam. The confirmation of the Nov 28-Dec 1 trip to
the predominantly Muslim nation came in an advisory to journalists on
accreditation and a separate announcement that he was making the trip
at the invitation of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. The main purpose
of the visit is to meet in Istanbul — the former Constantinople —
with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, spiritual head of the world’s
Orthodox Christians. It should be noted that the sharp statements of
the Pope aroused a wave of indignation within the Muslim world and his
visit to Turkey remained undecided during the recent several weeks,
reports Reuters.