SULAIMANI (ESTA) — U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday welcomed the “historic” visit by Pope Francis to Iraq, saying it sent an “important” message of peace.
“To see Pope Francis visit ancient religious sites, including the biblical birthplace of Abraham, spend time with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Najaf, and offer prayers in Mosul – a city that only a few years ago endured the depravity and intolerance of a group like ISIS – is a symbol of hope for the entire world,” Biden said in a statement.
Francis, who paid a four-day visit to Iraq, ended his tour of Iraq on Monday morning, departing by plane from Baghdad after visiting conflict-torn cities, meeting Muslim and Christian leaders and preaching peace and coexistence over war.
“Iraq will always remain in my heart,” Francis said in a tweet on Monday.
“I ask all of you, dear brothers and sisters, to work together, united for a future of peace prosperity that leaves no one behind and discriminates against no one,” he added.
During Francis’ s trip, the first ever papal visit to Iraq, he toured four cities, including Mosul, the former Islamic State (ISIS) stronghold where vast areas still lie in ruins, telling Iraqis that “peace is more powerful than war”.
Iraqis welcomed the pope and said it was a chance for the world to see their perpetually crisis-hit nation in a new light.
Iraq suffers from chronic mismanagement and corruption, and a steady level of violence often linked to the region’s U.S.-Iran rivalry 18 years after the United States invaded.
