Pope Francis visits Christians in Iraq to pray for the victims of ISIS

● “Hope is stronger than hatred,” Francis told worshipers from a sunlit platform amid the ruins of a church that was used by ISIS as a prison. ● There is a tight security cordon around all the areas the Pope visits, and it is a reminder that Iraq is still facing threats from militants .. Erbil, Iraq – Among the ruins of a destroyed church, Pope Francis led a prayer for the victims of the war in the Iraqi city of Mosul, which was destroyed by the battle on Sunday, in The framework of a historic visit aimed at offering condolences to the Christian community, which ISIS tried to eliminate. And the Pope said: “Hope is stronger than hatred.” Dressed in his white scarf and gold scarf, Francis addressed congregants against the backdrop of the devastation: The church from which he once spoke was used as a prison by ISIS militants, and later destroyed in a US-led coalition airstrike. When the Pope arrived on Sunday, a chorus echoed over its lead-filled walls. “Today we raise our voices in prayer to the Almighty God for all the victims of war and armed conflict. Here in Mosul, the tragic consequences of war and hostility are very clear,” Pope Francis read in a soft voice. On the third day of Francis’ four-day journey through Iraq, the Pope’s first trip to the country, it took him through Iraq. In the north, including the Kurdish Autonomous Region. Francis’ visit creates a striking contrast – the leader of the Roman Catholic Church came to a region that only four years ago was under the control of a terrorist group that killed religious minorities and pledged in its propaganda to “conquer Rome,” a symbol of Christians. The West, however, in the aftermath of that period, the region is far from recovering. Disputes between Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds over land and ideals are still raging. More than a million people remain displaced. ISIS has been driven from its territory, but small pockets of loyalists operate underground. Christians, under threat of transformation and violence, have fled the region in droves – a dynamic that church officials hope will help Francis’ trip reverse. Security forces deployed to Mosul and beyond on Sunday, in a reminder that while Iraq is no longer at war, threats from coarse groups of Islamic State fighters still persist. The highway to Qaraqosh, where the Pope was speaking later in the afternoon, turned into a surreal mix of shepherds, sheep and heavily armed military observers on the grassy slopes. Islamic State: ISIS used the same cathedral that hosts Francis in Qaraqosh until 2016 as a shooting range. A priest in the church, Petrus Cheto, said that church members, after returning after the defeat of ISIS, found “everything destroyed – there is no sign of life whatsoever.” He said, “You cannot imagine.” “It was just buildings without people. It was like hell.” Francis is midway through his first journey since the pandemic and used his early days in Iraq to demand coexistence and an end to religious violence. Friday, he met privately with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the leading religious figure among Shiites Iraqis, who rarely open their door to world leaders, political or religious.The Pope also held an interfaith event in the southern Plain of Ur, the alleged birthplace of Ibrahim, the visit inspired pride across the country, as many Iraqis saw the tour as a rare moment. Their homeland is in the headlines for a story that does not dominate. Violence. But the optics have also been criticized. Iraq’s infrastructure has been crippled by decades of corruption and neglect – before the Pope’s visit, the authorities paved the roads he was to lead along, and planted flowers along the roads he was. See it.They were happy with the Pope’s arrival because he had given the Iraqi government the drive to partially pave their streets.The Christian community in Iraq has shrunk sevenfold over the past three decades – partly due to violent persecution – and hundreds of thousands have sought Other places. In Qaraqosh on Sunday, Faten Boutros, 24, said she saw daily life return to Medina. The lights were on. Singing rang from the church’s loudspeakers. On Sunday, families carrying balloons and banners lined the road to town, but also lived with memories of three years on the run. She fled with an ID card and three pairs of clothes, then returned to her city to find plenty of them. – including her family’s home – she said, “I don’t even have a picture from my childhood.” Putrus said her six uncles have left for other countries, with no plans to return. Same with many of her friends. Much was lost, and it was almost inconceivable to put it back together. “We still don’t have a stable foundation for ourselves,” she said. “All the time, we fear a situation like this will happen again.”