Pope Benedict XVI to visit Israel in 2009?

A Vatican spokesman has confirmed that the Vatican and Israel are considering a papal trip to the Holy Land in 2009 (Zenit News Service):

Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, responded today to a report from an Israeli newspaper that Benedict XVI could visit the Holy Land next year.

The spokesman's brief statement was: "I can confirm that contacts exist at a diplomatic level between the Holy See and Israel to study the possibility of a trip by the Pope to the Holy Land next year."