The papal plane landed at Baghdad International Airport after taking off from Italy’s Fiumicino Airport on Friday morning. Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi arrived at Baghdad’s airport to receive Pope Francis.
The papal trip to Iraq will last until 8 March and includes visits to Baghdad, Najaf, Ur — thought to be the birthplace of Abraham — and other cities.
Ahead of the visit, the pope said in a special address to the Iraqi people that he would come to their country as a peace messenger to pray for reconciliation after the years of war and terrorism that have plagued Iraq.
Check out Sputnik's gallery to see the historic papal visit to Iraq.
Pope Francis releases a white dove during a prayer for war victims at “Hosh al-Bieaa”, Church Square, in Mosul's Old City, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
Pope Francis arrives to hold a minute of silence at the destroyed cathedral in Mosul's Old City, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
People wait for the arrival of Pope Francis near the Grand Immaculate Church in the town of Qaraqosh, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
A security officer guards the area ahead of Pope Francis' visit to Mosul, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
A motorcade leaves the Syro-Catholic Cathedral of “Our Lady of Salvation” after Pope Francis' visit, in Baghdad, Iraq, 5 March 2021.
Pope Francis meets with Iraq's top Shi'ite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, in Najaf, Iraq. Picture taken 6 March 2021.
Girls wave national flags as they gather at Church Square ahead of Pope Francis' arrival to visit Mosul, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
A photojournalist uses his camera from atop a broken wall near the ruins of the Syriac Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception (al-Tahira-l-Kubra), in the Old City of Iraq's northern Mosul, amidst preparations ahead of the Pope's visit, on 7 March 2021.
Pope Francis is welcomed as he arrives for an inter-religious prayer at the ancient archaeological site of Ur, traditionally believed to be the birthplace of Abraham, in Ur near Nasiriya, Iraq, 6 March 2021.
A girl sits down before Pope Francis holds a prayer at the Grand Immaculate Church in the town of Qaraqosh, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi welcomes Pope Francis at Baghdad International Airport, in Baghdad, Iraq, 5 March 2021.
People wait for the arrival of Pope Francis near the Grand Immaculate Church in the town of Qaraqosh, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
A nun wearing a protective face mask greets Pope Francis during a prayer for war victims at “Hosh al-Bieaa”, Church Square, in Mosul's Old City, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
Journalists and people wait for the arrival of Pope Francis at “Hosh al-Bieaa”, Church Square, in Mosul's Old City, Iraq, 7 March 2021.
Pope Francis waves as he leaves after holding a mass at the Chaldean Cathedral of "Saint Joseph" in Baghdad, Iraq, 6 March 2021.
