In a startling revelation from his upcoming autobiography "Hope," Pope Francis has disclosed that multiple assassination attempts were planned during his historic 2021 visit to Iraq, including plots involving a female suicide bomber and a car bomb targeting his delegation in Mosul.
The Pope's groundbreaking visit to Iraq—the first papal visit to the nation—was nearly derailed by what British intelligence identified as a coordinated terrorist plot. The disclosure sheds new light on what was already considered one of the most dangerous papal missions in recent history.
According to Francis, Vatican officials learned of the threats immediately after touching down in Baghdad. Iraqi police, acting on British intelligence, intercepted both a female suicide bomber and a vehicle packed with explosives headed toward Mosul, where the pontiff was scheduled to visit churches destroyed during ISIS's occupation of the city.
When Francis inquired about the fate of the would-be assassins, he received a terse response from his security commander: "They are no more." The Pope writes that Iraqi police had intercepted the terrorists, who subsequently detonated their explosives.
The visit to Mosul held particular significance as the city had been under ISIS control from 2014 to 2017, during which time the terrorist organization systematically destroyed Christian places of worship. Despite strong advice against the journey due to both security concerns and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Francis insisted on making the trip.
The scale of security operations surrounding the visit, previously unreported, involved approximately 10,000 Iraqi police officers. The Vatican maintained strict silence about security arrangements during the Pope's time in the country, while also enforcing reduced crowd sizes due to COVID-19 protocols.
The Pope's decision to proceed with the visit despite clear intelligence about serious threats remains questionable.
Ynet contributed to this article.
