During a conference held in Rome on Wednesday and Thursday, the Vatican reiterated the importance of free access and worship in all holy places in Jerusalem, The Middle East Monitor reported.

The conference was organized by the Joint Working Group for Dialogue, the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue and the Palestinian Commission for Interreligious Dialogue.

Sheikh Mahmoud Al-Habbash, religious affairs advisor to Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, headed the Palestinian delegation.

The different delegations met in the Vatican with Pope Francis, who encouraged the efforts of this working group.

In a statement, the PA Embassy to the Vatican said that academic papers were presented during the event reiterating the “spiritual, historical and cultural status of the Palestinian city for Muslims and Christians.”

Vatican News reported that Pope Francis also “highlighted the spiritual significance of Jerusalem, which formed the theme chosen for the working group’s meeting.”

(MEMO, PC)