The Australian gets it wrong

More precisely, John Lyons, their Middle East Correspondent did. Below is what he wrote this morning:

The Vatican has issued one of its strongest condemnations yet of Israel's "occupation" of the West Bank. It has rejected the use of biblical texts by Jewish settlers to justify "injustices".

Releasing a strongly worded document by the synod of bishops for the Middle East, a senior Archbishop also challenged the notion of Jews as "the chosen people", saying such a concept no longer existed.

After a two-week conference, which ended with a meeting with the Pope, the bishops called on the international community to pressure Israel to end the occupation. "Recourse to theological and biblical positions, which use the word of God to wrongly justify injustices, is not acceptable," the statement said.

More HERE

One has to wonder if the opening words are the work of Lyons or the work of a sub-editor. Lyons has been prominent in Australian journalism for some time so I am inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt and blame a sub-editor for the clanger.

The problem is, you see, that the Vatican issued NO statement about Israel whatsoever. The statement was issued by a clutch of Middle-Eastern bishops with a vested interest in protecting their people from Muslim attacks. Being pro-Israel would be fatal to them. Their only connection to the Vatican is that they held their conference there. Israel's reply is here