ROME — Israel's prime minister asked Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday to urge Christians to protest Holocaust denials, Israeli government officials said.

During their meeting at the Vatican, Benedict told Prime Minister Ehud Olmert he would consider the request, which followed an Iranian conference questioning the Nazi genocide against the Jews.

Benedict met with Olmert alone for 35 minutes, longer than the 10 minutes expected, and praised Israel's restraint in Gaza, Israeli spokesman Jacob Galanti said. In response to an invitation from Olmert, Benedict said he wants to visit Israel "when things calm down," the Israeli officials said.

The Vatican said they discussed Middle East peace issues and questions regarding the Catholic community in Israel, including the upcoming Christmas celebrations. The brief statement did not elaborate.

Israel and the Vatican established diplomatic relations in the 1990s, and the late Pope John Paul II made a pilgrimage to Israel in 2000. In a dramatic visit to Jerusalem's Western Wall, John Paul left a copy of his declaration asking God's forgiveness for sins against the Jews.

Olmert's request that the pope denounce Holocaust denials in his next homily came one day after the Vatican issued a statement calling on people to remember the Nazi campaign of extermination.