A member of the Iraqi security forces walks past a mural of Pope Francis with an Iraqi national flag, painted on a blast wall outside the Syriac Catholic Church of Our Lady of Deliverance in Baghdad
Among those who tested positive just days before the pontiff’s arrival was the Vatican’s ambassador to Iraq, Mitja Leskovar. Authorities have also barred travel between Iraq’s provinces to keep down crowds, which are expected to be much thinner than the usual mass gatherings that welcome a visiting pope.
Francis will cover more than 1,445 kilometres by plane and helicopter, flying directly over areas that recently saw fighting against jihadist sleeper cells. At the pyramid-like ziggurat, workers in hard-hats and neon vests are rushing to lay down wooden walkways and large parasols to create shade for the crowds expected to throng the site.
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