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Pope urges Muslims and Christians to reject war

ABU DHABI: Pope Francis denounced the “logic of armed power” in Yemen, Syria and other Middle East wars Monday on a landmark visit to the Arabian Peninsula where Islam emerged, telling Christians and Muslims that conflicts brought nothing but misery and death.

Francis, the first pontiff to set foot on the peninsula, was speaking during a trip to the United Arab Emirates, which is playing a leading role in Yemen’s conflict as part of an Arab military coalition.

“War cannot create anything but misery, weapons bring nothing but death,” he said in a speech after meeting UAE leaders in the capital Abu Dhabi Monday, the first full day of a trip he hopes will foster peace through religious dialogue.

“Its fateful consequences are before our eyes. I am thinking in particular of Yemen, Syria, Iraq and Libya,” he said at an inter-religious meeting at the United Arab Emirates Founder’s Memorial.

“Let us commit ourselves against the logic of armed power,” he said in his first public address on the trip after meeting with Sheikh Ahmad al-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Egypt’s Al-Azhar Mosque who called on Muslims in the Middle East to embrace Christians.

The United Nations is trying to implement a fragile cease-fire deal in the Yemen’s main Hodeida port, a lifeline for millions and the site of some of the war’s fiercest battles. It hopes the deal will pave the way for talks to end the war. Francis used his regular Sunday address in Vatican City to urge all sides to implement the deal and help deliver aid.

A senior UAE official welcomed his comments on the peace deal: “Let us assure its implementation and make 2019 the year of peace in Yemen,” Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash wrote on Twitter late Sunday.

The Grand Imam, the most senior Muslim figure taking part in the visit, called on Muslims in the Middle East to “embrace” local Christian communities, describing them as part of the nation and not a minority.

“You are citizens with full rights and responsibilities,” said Sheikh Tayeb, whose Al-Azhar university represents one of the main seats of learning of Sunni Islam.

He also called on Muslims in the West to integrate in their host nations and respect local laws. Sheikh Tayeb and the pope signed a document of “human fraternity” which carried a message against religious extremism.

Earlier Monday the pope was welcomed to the sprawling presidential palace for private talks with Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammad bin Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and other UAE leaders.

The visit got positive media attention in neighboring Saudi Arabia. The main English daily, Arab News, ran a picture of the pope and Abu Dhabi’s crown prince calling it “the moment that made history on the Arabian Peninsula.”

It ran an article citing Muslim and Catholic officials saying Saudi Arabia could feature in a future papal visit.

Priests and diplomats describe the UAE as one of the least restrictive environments in the Gulf for Christian worship, which is allowed in church compounds with special licenses.

Vatican officials say they hope one of the immediate effects of the visit will be permission to build more church compounds in the UAE to minister to the Catholic community.

Tuesday before returning to Rome, the pope will celebrate an outdoor mass for some 135,000 Catholics in an Abu Dhabi sports stadium, an event with no precedent in the peninsula.

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