Pope John Paul II on Saturday issued a new appeal for peace in Iraq and the Middle East, condemning the "horror" of violence as well as "the terrorism that cruelly targets the innocent".
"There can be no lasting easing of tension in international relations unless the desire for dialogue prevails over the logic of conflict. Whether in Iraq, where it seems so difficult to restore civil peace, in the Holy Land, unfortunately disfigured by an endless conflict or in other countries reeling from the terrorism that so cruelly targets the innocent, everywhere violence shows its horror and its inability to solve conflicts," he added.
"It (violence) will yield nothing good, only hatred, destruction and death," the pontiff added during an a meeting with Egypt's new ambassador to the Vatican, Nevine Simaika Halim.
Referring to the current "troubled times", the pope again called "on the international community to assume its responsibilities to foster a return to common sense and negotiation, the only possible way out of conflicts between men."
Pope John Paul, a fierce opponent of the US-led war on Iraq last year, had pressed US President George W. Bush to "normalise the situation (in Iraq) as soon as possible" when the two men met at the Vatican in June.
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