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Baghdad (AP) - On the second day of his visit to Iraq, Pope Francis is hoping for a new impetus for the interreligious dialogue between Christianity and Islam.
Today, Saturday, in the city of Najaf, he will meet Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the most important representative of Shiite Islam in Iraq.
It is unclear whether the two will sign a joint statement.
The program for the head of the Catholic Church also includes an interreligious encounter in the plain of Ur, from which, according to biblical tradition, Abraham originated.
Francis had arrived in Baghdad the day before.
It is the first ever visit by a Pope to Iraq.
With the trip he fulfills the long-standing hopes of the country's afflicted Christian minority.
At the beginning, the 84-year-old called for an end to the violence.
"The guns should be silent," said the Pope.
At the same time, he called on the Iraqi leadership to grant rights and protection to all religious groups.
"Nobody should be seen as a second-class citizen," he said.
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In Baghdad he was greeted by cheering believers who had lined up along the street, often crowded together.
There had also been criticism in the run-up to the fact that the Pope was visiting the country in the midst of the corona pandemic.
The number of new infections every day had risen significantly in Iraq in the past few weeks.
Najaf, around 150 kilometers south of the capital Baghdad, is an important center of Shiite Islam.
This is where the Imam Ali Mosque is located, where the Prophet Mohammed's son-in-law Ali, who was killed in 661, is said to be buried.
Shiite Islam goes back to him, next to Sunni Islam the second major trend in world religion.
The Shiites make up the majority in Iraq.
Grand Ayatollah Al-Sistani has millions of followers and also enjoys political influence.
His speeches are very well received in Iraq.
However, he lives withdrawn from the public.
He has his Friday sermons read out.
He will also meet Pope Francis behind closed doors.
A joint declaration would be a success for interreligious dialogue.
In 2019, the Pope in Abu Dhabi signed such a document with the Sunni Grand Imam of Egypt, Ahmed al-Tajjib.
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Muslims, Jews and Christians, among others, are to take part in the meeting in Ur.
In the three religions, Abraham is regarded as the progenitor, which gives a visit to the thousands of years old settlement area additional symbolism.
In the afternoon Francis wants to travel to Baghdad again and celebrate a mass in the Cathedral of St. Joseph
.
The region of what is now Iraq is considered to be one of the oldest settlements in Christianity.
The Christian community there, which is persecuted again and again, has shrunk considerably in the past few decades.
Christians and other religious minorities suffered particularly in the areas controlled by the Islamic State (IS) terrorist militia.
Once there were more than a million Christians in Iraq.
Today it is estimated to be 250,000 to 400,000.
Francis is visiting Iraq at a time when the corona pandemic is worsening again.
Iraq is one of the countries in the region hardest hit by the pandemic.
The security situation had also worsened recently.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210306-99-710604 / 3