18 December 2024 , 17:23
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Pope Francis has revealed that British spies foiled a suicide bomb plot after ISIS targeted him during a visit to Iraq.
The religious leader revealed that he faced two suicide bomb threats while visiting Iraq, with British intelligence tipping off local police, who neutralised the bombers before they could attack.
In 2021, the Pope visited Mosul, Iraq, where Iraqi Christians had been persecuted by Islamic State fighters.
Francis was informed about the potential attack, but pushed on with his visit undeterred.
He wrote: "The police told the Vatican gendarmes about information supplied by British intelligence: A woman carrying explosives, a young suicide bomber, was heading to Mosul to blow herself up during the papal visit,
“And a truck was also on its way at top speed with the same intent.”
This comes as Pope Francis published excerpts from his new autobiography, Hope, detailing the trip.
The Pope was escorted by armed military pickup trucks, fitted with machine-gun snipers.
He told the persecuted Christians that “fraternity is more durable than fratricide”.
In his book, he wrote that "almost everyone" had tried to convince him to not visit Iraq due to "the extremely high security risk", but he "felt like he had to".
Due to the ongoing conflict in the country, numbers of Christians in Iraq have dropped from one million to just 300,000, as many have emigrated.
He wrote: “Isis is still there today, even though they have shaved their beards off. Mosul is also pretty dangerous for Christians today thanks to the Shia militias.
"There is one priest there and no resident bishop."
Hope was intended to be published after Pope Francis’ death, but is now set to release in January 2025.