VATICAN CITY: Despite the multiple threats of Covid-19 and terrorism, the first-ever PopeFrancis’s visit to Iraq is due to begin on Friday.
According to a BBC report, the 84-year-old head of the Catholic Church will be greeted by welcomed by Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi and President Barham Salih upon his arrival in Baghdad. After this, he will meet bishops and other clergy Our Lady of Salvation, a Syriac Catholic church in the capital city.
Pope Francis will also participate in an inter-religious meeting at the ancient site of Ur, traditionally believed to be the birthplace of the Prophet Abraham.
On Saturday, he will arrive at the city of Najaf, where he will visit Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the leading spiritual leader of Iraqi Shia Muslims and one of the most senior clerics in Shia Islam. On Sunday, he will visit Mosul, the former stronghold of the Islamic State terror group, and will say a prayer of suffrage in the Church Square.
Later in the day, he will celebrate Mass at a stadium in Irbil, the capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region. Some 10,000 Iraqi security personnel have been deployed to ensure the safety of the Pope.
In view of the raging pandemic, the Pope, who has already received two shots of the BioNTech/Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine, will have limited public access, the BBC reported.
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