Archbishop to Hold Vigil for Middle East, Hits Out at Bush

|PIC1|One of the most senior leaders in the Church of England, the Archbishop of York is to hold a weeklong vigil inside his cathedral during which time he will abstain entirely from food. The effort is intended as a demonstration of his solidarity with the victims of the Middle East conflict.

Archbishop Dr John Sentamu made the announcement Friday that he had cancelled his holiday to Salzburg, Austria, and would instead sleep alone in the 13th century gothic cathedral of York Minster for the next week, reports Reuters.

“In the Middle East there are thousands of people sleeping in churches, bunkers, underground car parks and shelters in an attempt to escape from the bombs and rockets that are falling on both sides of the border," Sentamu said in a statement.

"This act is a rallying call to people of all faiths and none, to encourage them to feel that there is something that can be done."

Archbishop Sentamu said he would lead prayers every hour throughout the seven days to support those affected by Israel’s military assault on Lebanon to root out Hezbollah militants.

|QUOTE|"We have an opportunity to stand up and be counted with those in Israel, Lebanon and Palestine," said Sentamu, who starts his vigil on Sunday. "This is what this week will be about."

The Archbishop of York also criticised US President George W. Bush for comments he made following the foiled bomb plot to blow up flights from Britain to the United States, reports AFP.

Following the revelations earlier in the week of the terrorist plot, Bush warned that the West was at war with “Islamic fascists”, comments the Archbishop of York said were not helpful.

|TOP|"I actually want to see this society becoming a good neighbourly place and you are not going to do it by that kind of language on a ranch in Texas.”

He also criticised the international community for failing to heed the call by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan on 20 July for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East.

"The UN has a role, diplomacy has a role and our government has a role to play in bringing this conflict to an end," he said.

"But we as people also have a role to play in showing our common humanity with all those who are suffering.

"Just like those sleeping on the floors of bunkers, car parks and churches, I will also spend the week camped out sleeping in the Minster."

The Church of England has appealed for an immediate end to the fighting which has now killed more than 1,000 people and left another 900,000 displaced.

The Archbishop of York expressed his hope that others in Britain might join him in his vigil by giving up one meal and donating the money they would have spent to charities currently serving in the conflict zone.