Next month's visit to Israel by Pope Benedict XVI is becoming more political with the announcement by the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem that he will preach at an Arab village of descendants of former Arab Israelis. The pope’s message at the Al–Aida village near Bethlehem will symbolize the Arab claim of the “right of return,” according to the patriarch, Fuad Twal.

Israel already has told the Vatican that it does not want any pictures of the pope touring the separation barrier, which many foreign media refer to as the “Apartheid Wall.” Tourism Minister Stas Misezhnikov also has protested to the Vatican's plan for the pope to visit the Galilee city of Sakhnin, whose mayor led anti-Israel demonstrations during the Operation Cast Lead counterterrorist campaign earlier this year.