By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Head of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis, escaped at least two attempts on his life during his visit to Iraq in March 2021, excerpts from his forthcoming autobiography published by Italian media on Tuesday have revealed.
The pontiff’s Vatican security detail received an urgent warning from British secret services, he stated in the book.
“A woman packed with explosives, a young suicide bomber, was heading towards Mosul to blow herself up during the papal visit,” he wrote.
The book, Hope, is expected to go on sale in over 80 countries in January.
According to excerpts from the book, “And a van had also set off at great speed with the same intention.”
The two attackers were intercepted and killed by Iraqi police, an AFP report indicates.
Pope Francis, who turned 88 on Tuesday, wrote further, “Almost everyone advised me against” the trip to Iraq, “but I wanted to get to the bottom of things. I felt I had to do it.”
The Pope’s three-day visit in March 2021 took place amid intense security deployment.
It was his first trip in 15 months and occurred in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic.
During the visit, the Argentine Pope criss-crossed the country, travelling to Baghdad and Mosul, once a hotbed of the Islamic State group and a high-risk zone for his personal safety.
The Pope’s security details are drawn from the Pontifical Swiss Guard and the Vatican Gendarmerie, in collaboration with local law enforcement during his foreign trips.
