The Vatican said that the trip is still scheduled despite the strike in the foreign ministry that could complicate logistics.
“The strike may create difficulties but for now there is nothing further as far as were concerned,” Father Frederico Lombardi, head of the Vatican’s press office, was quoted as saying by The Jerusalem Post.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, said: "I think everything will go ahead as planned: the visit will go ahead and according to the set schedule." He said that the strike caused some "apprehensions" but no changes in plans.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry’s Workers Union is pushing for higher wages and better working conditions for diplomats serving abroad.
The Pope’s trip is scheduled for May 24-26 and includes stops in Amman, Bethlehem and Jerusale. It will mark the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s visit, the first in modern times. Pope John Paul II visited in 2000 and Benedict XVI came in 2009.
source familiar with the matter told The Algemeiner that the Prime Minister’s Office has a back-up plan in place for it to take charge of areas that the Foreign Ministry normally would, similar to how Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Los Angeles this week was led by his office, in coordination with the Los Angeles Jewish Federation, though it would have normally fallen to the diplomatic corps.
The source, citing information from the Pope’s office, said that Pope Francis very much insisted that his visit happen while Shimon Peres is still Israel’s President, and with his term ending in May, there is no scope to reschedule. In addition, emails seen between the Pope’s office and Argentine Rabbi Abraham Skorka, who will be traveling to Israel for the event, indicate that all is still proceeding as planned.
The Pope’s trip is scheduled for May 24 to 26, includes stops in Amman, Bethlehem and Jerusalem, and will mark the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s visit, the first in modern times. Pope John Paul II visited in 2000 and Benedict XVI came in 2009.
Earlier this week, it was announced that British Prime Minister David Cameron was forced to reschedule his planned visit to Israel due to the foreign ministry labor dispute. Cameron was due to address the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, on March 12.
“I just don’t see how it’ll be possible to go ahead with the visit without the cooperation of the foreign ministry,” foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor told The Times of Israel.
But the British Embassy in Israel denied on Friday that an official announcement had been made about Cameron's visit.
"We don't comment on the Prime Minister's travel plans," they said.
Cameron previously cancelled a trip to Israel due to wide scale flooding in Britain last month.