Christian Arabs Said Leaving Jerusalem

AMMAN, Jordan - Jordan's king told the archbishop of Canterbury Monday that Israel's presence in Jerusalem has prompted many Christian Arabs to leave the city.

AP Photo AP Photo Slideshow: Mideast Conflict

"Christian Arab existence in Jerusalem is being threatened because its Arab population is emigrating in view of the Israeli occupation of the holy city," said Abdullah II, according to the official Petra news agency.

Petra said Rowan Williams, world leader of the Anglican Church, listened to Abdullah's views on the issue during a meeting at a royal palace in Amman.

Williams, who arrived in Jordan late Sunday, is on a regional tour which will take him to Israel and the Palestinian territories.

In a sermon Monday, Williams urged his Anglican congregation at Amman's Episcopal Church to follow the example of Jesus Christ in "building bridges into the suffering of another" and in living at peace with themselves and others in their community.

"We are able at last to recognize that evil is not somewhere out there in the stranger, the enemy, but in our own hearts," he said at the Mass attended by royal family members and leaders of other Christian communities.

Christians make up 6 percent of Jordan's 5.1 million population, with the rest of the population Muslim. The royal family also is Muslim.

Before his departure for Israel Tuesday, Williams was due to tour a biblical site on the Jordan River, where it is believed that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.

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