In pictures: Pope visits Golan Heights

The Pope has continued his politically sensitive trip to Syria with a visit to the abandoned town of Quneitra in the Golan Heights, destroyed by Israel in 1974.

The visit comes a day after the Pope made history by becoming the first Roman Catholic pontiff to enter a Muslim place of worship.

The political overtones of the Pope's visit to Quneitra were clear from the outset

The pontiff offered prayers at the town's abandoned Greek Orthodox church

Hundreds of people - many too young to remember the destruction of the town in 1974 - were specially bussed in

Urging people to "tear down the walls of hostility", the Pope planted an olive tree as a symbol of peace

On Sunday, Pope John Paul became the first Roman Catholic pontiff to enter a Muslim place of worship

He spent a silent minute in prayer at the tomb in the Umayyad Mosque where St John the Baptist is believed to be buried

Inside the mosque he made a joint address with Syria's top Muslim cleric, the Grand Mufti