UPDATE 2 -Pope Francis urges end to violence, extremism on Iraq visit

UPDATES WITH STATEMENTS BY POPE FRANCIS, MINOR EDITS, REVISES HEADLINE

By Ibrahim Salih and Zehra Nur Duz

BAGHDAD/ANKARA (AA) – Pope Francis on Friday called for an end to violence and extremism in his address during the first-ever visit by a pope to Iraq.

He was welcomed by Iraqi President Barham Salih in an official ceremony at the presidential palace in the Green Zone in the capital Baghdad, which hosts Iraqi government buildings and many foreign embassies.

The pontiff also met with Iraqi political leaders, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and diplomats there.

In his speech at the presidential palace, the pope urged Iraq to "combat scourge of corruption, promote justice, and end violence and extremism."

He also addressed the minorities in Iraq, calling on Christians for more "participation in public life" and touched on the sufferings of Ezidis inflicted by the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group, dubbing them "innocent victims of senseless atrocities."

Later in the day, Pope Francis shared a post on Twitter regarding his official visit to Iraq.

“I come as a penitent, asking forgiveness from Heaven and our brothers for so much destruction and cruelty; a pilgrim of peace, in the name of Christ, Prince of Peace. How we have prayed, in these years, for peace in Iraq! God always listens. It is up to us to walk His paths,” Francis said.

“Only if we succeed in regarding each other, with our differences, as members of the same human family, can we begin an effective process of reconstruction and leave a better, more just and more human world to the future generations,” he noted.

Pope Francis arrived in the Iraqi capital Baghdad Friday on a four-day official visit.

The state-run Al-Iraqiya TV broadcast live the landing of his plane.

He was received at the Baghdad International Airport by Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi and a large number of officials and clerics of different religions and sects in Iraq.

Francis later met with Al-Kadhimi in a hall at the airport.

It is also the pope's first foreign tour since the global outbreak of coronavirus.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat and Zehra Nur Duz