MARSEILLE, France – Pope Francis arrived at the French port city of Marseille on Friday, September 22, for a lightning visit that will center on Europe’s migration crisis, lamenting that migrants today face “a terrible lack of humanity”.
“It is cruelty, a terrible lack of humanity,” he said, referring to the situation of migrants in the Mediterranean in general. Nearly, 130,000 migrants have arrived in Italy so far this year, according to government data, nearly double the figure for the same period of 2022. “He behaves like a politician, or the head of an NGO, and not a pope,” said Gilles Pennelle, general director of the far-right Rassemblement National party of Marine Le Pen, President Emmanuel Macron’s main challenger in last year’s presidential vote.
The French bishops deliberately chose the diverse port city for the week-long “Mediterranean Encounters” event. It has a long history of migration – particularly from Europe, the Middle East and North Africa – and the influences of these different cultures are still felt in its streets.