POPE Benedict yesterday made an emotional visit to Ground Zero, the site of the World Trade Centre destroyed in the 11 September attacks, and prayed for the 3,000 victims, their families and an end to hate and violence.
In a high point of his visit to the United States, the Pope blessed the gaping crater – considered hallowed ground by many who lost relatives in the 2001 al-Qaeda attacks – and spoke with each of 24 special guests. They were 16 relatives of peop
le killed when the jets hit the towers and eight survivors – four World Trade Centre workers and four people who rushed to help.
Hundreds of people stood just outside the site, behind police barricades, hoping for a glimpse of the Pope
, dressed in a long white coat against the chill wind and damp.
James Riches, New York's deputy fire chief and the father of a fallen 9/11 firefighter, said the papal visit was important and had given him "a little consolation".
The site where the World Trade Centre was destroyed is normally filled with hundreds of workers building a 102-storey skyscraper, a memorial and transport hub. It bears little resemblance to the debris-filled pit where crews toiled to remove twisted steel and victims' remains. Those of more than 1,100 people have never been identified.
An eerie fog shrouded the tops of nearby skyscrapers in New York's financial district as the German-born Pope read out a prayer for those who died at Ground Zero, the Pentagon and on United Flight 93 in Pennsylvania on 11 September, 2001.
"God of peace…turn to your way of love those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred," he said.
"Grant that those whose lives were spared may live so that the lives lost here may not have been lost in vain. Comfort and console us, strengthen us in hope, and give us the wisdom and courage to work tirelessly for a world where true peace and love reign among nations and in the hearts of all."
The passage about those with "minds consumed with hatred" has stirred controversy, because some people interpreted it as a prayer for the hijackers who died on the planes.
Vatican officials have not interpreted the prayer but noted that Benedict had, in the past, urged radicals to eschew violence and use only peaceful means. The wording appeared to indicate he meant those who were still alive.
Michael Bloomberg the mayor of New York, said he had no concerns about the content of the prayer.
"He really does understand what happened here and how this was an attack on freedom-loving people around the world and people who want to be able to practice their religion," he said at Ground Zero.
"I think that he has always been a man of peace and a man who believes we should live together, and he is praying for everyone."
Last month, Osama bin Laden, the al-Qaeda leader, accused the Pope of being part of a "new crusade" against Islam. The Vatican rejected the accusation.
After the Pope left, the 24 special guests were given small crosses made of the steel from the rubble of the World Trade Centre and inscribed with the words "Remembering 9-11."
The Pope then held a final mass for about 55,000 people at New York's Yankee Stadium before leaving for Rome in the evening.
During his six-day visit, the 81-year-old Pope spoke out several times about the sexual abuse scandal that has rocked the Church in the US and has cost it some $2 billion in damages.
He also addressed the United Nations and met George Bush, the US president.
