The Federal Government has dispatched a delegation to dialogue with authorities of Israel and Palestine to determine their commitment to restoring peace in the Middle East.
Leader of the Federal Government's delegation and Chairman of National Christian Pilgrims Commission, Dr. John Okpara, stated this in Abuja after addressing 300 Israel-bound pilgrims from the Federal Capital Territory on Saturday night.
According to him, Nigeria's efforts at reviewing peace in the troubled Middle East is aimed at determining the safety of pilgrims in the Holy Land.
He said, "We are going to have a meeting with the Israel and Palestine government officials to seek protection of Nigerian pilgrims. Although there is relative peace, the government's decision is to ensure that Nigerians on religious exercise to Israel do not become casualties in the territorial dispute between the two countries."
Okpara said the delegation's assessment would determine the holy sites the pilgrims would visit during the pilgrimage.
He warned the pilgrims to conduct themselves properly, saying anybody that absconds would be treated like a terrorist by the Israeli government.
He added, "I want to say here that because of you, I would be flying tonight (Saturday) to Israel to go and hold meetings with Israeli and Palestinian authorities to be able to make sure that you enjoy your pilgrimage.
"Remember that they are now at war, so anybody that tries to breach their security, will be in trouble. So I am pleading with you that anybody that has any plan of doing anything funny should, please, repent here so that your prayer will be answered."
Okpara also urged the pilgrims to see the exercise as an opportunity for moral rebirth.
He added, "Pilgrimage should be seen as a tool for moral transformation and spiritual rebirth. The idea is that when our pilgrims are given the privilege of travelling to Israel, they should come back spiritually transformed, and renewed, so that they can impact on the lives of the people living around them.
"If you come back from pilgrimage and you are still the same persons, then something is wrong somewhere. You should go and come back as a changed person and be helping the government to move forward. So I am appealing to you to properly conduct yourselves while there."
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri, challenged the pilgrims to return as changed persons so as to contribute their quota to move the country forward.
She also charged them to avoid tarnishing the image of the country.
The Minister said, "We will not want you to be consular problems to us. We have reports of Nigerians in prisons elsewhere, who have been found wanting in their travel documents, their stay and all that, and each time, the ministry will be called upon to explain. We don't want you to add more to what we are going through."
