Prince William visits sacred sites in Jerusalem

Prince William on Thursday visited Jerusalem's most sacred religious sites and his great-grandmother's grave on the final day of his official tour to the region.

The tomb of Princess Alice - the Duke of Edinburgh's mother - is at the Church of Mary Magdalene, reports the BBC.

Princess Alice, who was a nun for many years, was first laid to rest at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, when she died in 1969.

But it was at her request that she was interred, in 1988, at the Russian Orthodox church on the Mount of Olives, near her aunt Elizabeth, the Grand Duchess of Russia.

The duke began his morning on the Mount of Olives. He then toured the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa mosque at the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif.

Prince William's tour ended at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which is widely regarded as Christianity's holiest place. Many Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected on the site.

It is shared by the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox, Egyptian Copt and Ethiopian Orthodox denominations of Christianity.

The Duke of Cambridge's five-day visit to Israel, the Palestinian territories and Jordan began on Sunday.

Since arriving on his current leg of the tour, he has met Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and its President Reuven Rivlin and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

On Wednesday, Prince William became the first royal family member to make an official visit to the Palestinian territories in the occupied West Bank.

--IANS

ksk/vm