Pope Francis is headed to Iraq for a historic visit by the Pontiff to the country.
The Pope is traveling with an entourage and a security detail as well as 75 journalists. He plans to visit a church in Baghdad to say Mass, and the Shiite holy city of Najaf, where he will meet with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the top Shiite cleric in Iraq.
He will then travel to the war-torn city of Mosul, which was the headquarters of the Islamic State until it was driven from the city in 2017 by Iraqi and Kurdish forces, with Western support. The Pontiff will also pay a visit to the ancient city of Ur, which is thought to be the birthplace of the prophet Abraham, a figure holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims.
The visit has prompted the Iraqi government to roll out extraordinary security precautions to ensure the Pope’s safety, including convoys of armoured cars and thousands of soldiers and police.
The Pope’s meeting with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani will be the first meeting between a Pope and the Grand Ayatollah in world history.