ROME: Pope Francis is sticking to a planned trip to Iraq at the end of the week despite the tense security situation in the country. The head of the Catholic Church confirmed his travel plans at a regular audience at the Vatican on Wednesday.
After wanting to meet the people in the country for so long, and recognising their suffering, he did not want to disappoint them, the 84-year-old Francis said.
Francis is due to visit Iraq from Friday to Monday for what he called a “pilgrimage.”
Among other things, he plans to hold talks in the capital Baghdad.
“The Iraqi people have already waited for John Paul II, who was forbidden to travel. You cannot disappoint a people for the second time,” the pope said.
On Tuesday, a spokesman for Francis said the pope would be travelling by armoured vehicle and that he would not be meeting crowds. “This is a particular situation, that’s why the transports will all be in a closed vehicle, meaning it will be complicated to see the pope on the streets,” spokesman Matteo Brunei said.
“There will be a number of meetings but none will be more than a few hundred people,” he said.
Francis will also visit Ur, birthplace of the prophet Abraham, and meet Iraq’s top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al Sistani, 90.
“In the land of Abraham, together with other religious leaders, we also will take another step forward in fraternity among believers,” Francis said.
The number of people who will be able to see him has been severely limited because of coronavirus restrictions. — dpa
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