Pope thanks Mubarak, Egyptian people

Pope of the Vatican John Paul II has expressed his thanks to and appreciation of the Egyptian people and President Mubarak for their warm reception during his recent historic visit. "I thank God that He allowed me to make my planned trip to Egypt in recent days," the Pope told the faithful in St. Peter's Square before his regular Angelus address. "Now my eyes turn to the Holy Land, land of Jesus Christ, where I will go, God willing, in the last week of March."

The Pope kept his fingers crossed that his call to deepen the dialogue between the three celestial religions: Islam, Christianity and Judaism would be accepted.