On his maiden visit to Iraq, Pope Francis advocates for peaceful coexistence

Pope Francis and Iraq's top Shiite cleric delivered a powerful message of peaceful coexistence Saturday, urging Muslims in the war-weary Arab nation to embrace Iraq's long-beleaguered Christian minority during a historic meeting in the holy city of Najaf. The closed-door meeting was expected to touch on issues plaguing Iraq's Christian minority. (AP Photo/Vatican Media)

One of the most important Shiite cleric in Iraq, Ali al-Sistani also holds a prominent place in Iraq's politics. Representing conservative Islam, he had earlier refused to talk with Iraq’s political leaders. His meeting with Pope Francis was on a condition that no Iraqi officials would be present, said a source in the president’s office. (AP Photo/HO)

Pope Francis arrived in Iraq on March 5 to urge the country's dwindling number of Christians to stay put and help rebuild the country after years of war and persecution, brushing aside the coronavirus pandemic and security concerns to make his first-ever papal visit. The meeting in the holy southern city of Najaf marks the first time a pope has met with such a senior Shi’ite cleric. (AP Photo/Vatican Media)

After he met with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Pope Francis visited the ruins of ancient Ur in southern Iraq, considered the traditional birthplace of Abraham the prophet common to Muslims, Christians and Jews. (AP Photo/Nabil al-Jourani)

An aerial photo shows the archaeological site of the 6,000-year-old archaeological site of Ur during the preparations for Pope Francis' visit near Nasiriyah, Iraq, Saturday, March 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Nabil al-Jourani)

Pope Francis, left, attended an interreligious meeting near the archaeological area of the Sumerian city-state of Ur, 20 kilometres south-west of Nasiriyah, Iraq, on March 6, 2021. Francis travelled to the southern ruins of Ur on Saturday to reinforce his message of interreligious tolerance and fraternity during the first-ever papal visit to Iraq, a country riven by religious and ethnic divisions. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Religious leaders stood to greet him. While Francis wore a mask, few of the leaders on the tented stage did. The meeting was held in the shadow of Ur's magnificent ziggurat, the 6,000-year-old archaeological complex near the modern city of Nasiriyah. AP Photo/Nabil al-Jourani) (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)