Pope Francis visits Iraq: Pontiff calls for ‘end to violence and extremism’ on historic visit

Pope Francis visits Iraq: Pontiff calls for ‘end to violence and extremism’ on historic visit

Pope Francis made a rousing call for peace on the first day of his historic visit to war-battered Iraq today, pleading with his hosts for an ‘end to acts of violence and extremism, factions and intolerance’. 

The 84-year-old, who defied security fears and the pandemic to become the first pontiff to travel to Iraq, urged religious faiths to ‘look beyond our differences’ in a country ravaged by ISIS which is home to one of the world’s most persecuted Christian communities.  

Delivering a message of hope to worshippers in Iraq, he paid tribute to the ‘age-old presence of Christians in this land, and their contributions to the life of the nation’. 

But he also reached out to Yazidis who were killed and tormented by ISIS, saying that ‘here, among so many who have suffered, my thoughts turn to the Yazidis, innocent victims of senseless and brutal atrocities’. 

Francis, who said he was travelling to Iraq as a ‘pilgrim of peace’ on his first foreign trip since the start of the pandemic, will also extend a hand to Shiite Muslims when he meets Iraq’s top cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani. 

‘Only if we learn to look beyond our differences and see each other as members of the same human family will we be able to begin an effective process of rebuilding and leave to future generations a better, more just and more humane world,’ he said, describing religious minorities as a ‘precious resource’ to be protected. 

He also urged Iraqi officials to ‘combat the scourge of corruption, misuse of power and disregard for law,’ in a country consistently ranked one of the most graft-tainted by global watchdogs.   

Pope Francis arrived in Iraq on Friday for the start of a four-day visit to the country - the first ever by a pontiff - designed to give hope to its Christian population which is among the world's most persecuted

Pope Francis arrived in Iraq on Friday for the start of a four-day visit to the country – the first ever by a pontiff – designed to give hope to its Christian population which is among the world’s most persecuted

Pope Francis arrives at the Sayidat al-Nejat (Our Lady of Salvation) cathedral in Baghdad today on the first day of his historic visit to Iraq where he began with a rousing call for peace

Pope Francis arrives at the Sayidat al-Nejat (Our Lady of Salvation) cathedral in Baghdad today on the first day of his historic visit to Iraq where…

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Pope Francis visits Iraq: Pontiff calls for 'end to violence and extremism' on historic visit

 

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