Pope Francis of the Roman Catholic Church, who is visiting Iraq in the Middle East, met with Sistani, the supreme authority of the majority Islamic Shiites in Iraq, and held dialogue meetings with leaders of each religion. I appealed for the reconciliation of.
Pope Francis visited Najaf in southern Iraq on the 6th to meet with Shiite Islamic leader Sistani.
At the meeting, Pope Francis emphasized the importance of mutual understanding between religions and called for "we can contribute to a better future in Iraq and the region."
In response, Rev. Sistani said, "Religious leaders have a role to play in eliminating tragedy such as war and violence," and expressed the idea of mutual understanding, including the protection of minority Christians.
After this, Pope Francis visited Ur, the southern part of Abraham, the ancestor of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, and held dialogue meetings with leaders of each religion to appeal for interreligious reconciliation. It was.
In Iraq, after the collapse of the Hussein administration in the 2003 Iraq War, confusion continued due to fierce sectarian conflicts and the rise of the extremist organization IS = Islamic State.
Pope Francis will also visit the IS-controlled northern Mosul to pray to the victims during his stay until the 8th.