JERUSALEM - A COURT in Jerusalem on Monday threw out a lawsuit against visiting Pope Benedict XVI filed by two far-right Israelis who claim treasures plundered from Jewish people over the centuries are held in the Vatican.

Baruch Marzel and Itamar Ben Gvir had named Pope Benedict as a leading defendant in the criminal complaint, accusing him and other top Roman Catholic officials of receiving and possessing stolen goods.

The court said it could not address the complaint since the pope, as head of the Vatican state, enjoyed diplomatic immunity.

The complaint listed treasure allegedly plundered from the Jewish people and held in the Vatican, including a golden Menorah looted from the Jerusalem Temple by Roman troops under general Titus, who played a major role in the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. -- AFP