ROME — Pope Francis said Wednesday he is traveling to Iraq this week come hell or high water to avoid letting the Iraqi people down.
“The day after tomorrow, God willing, I will go to Iraq for a three-day pilgrimage,” the pope said following his weekly general audience streamed from the library of the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. “For a long time I have wanted to meet those people who have suffered so much; to meet that martyred Church in the land of Abraham.”
As Breitbart News reported early Wednesday, at least 10 rockets struck the Ain al-Asad military airbase in western Iraq, the latest in a series of attacks — including twin suicide bombings in Baghdad — that have plagued Iraq in recent months.
Despite the dangers, Francis indicated Wednesday that he is undeterred in his plans.
“Together with the other religious leaders, we shall also take another step forward in brotherhood among believers,” he stated. “I ask you to accompany this apostolic journey with your prayers, so that it may unfold in the best possible way and bear the hoped-for fruits.”
The pontiff also alluded to past disappointments of the Iraqi people, notably an aborted trip by Pope John Paul II in 2000, insisting that they must not be let down again.
“The Iraqi people are waiting for us; they awaited Saint John Paul II, who was not permitted to go,” he declared. “One cannot disappoint a people for the second time. Let us pray that this journey will be a good one.”
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