By Courtney Mares
Iraqi Christians and Muslims alike have expressed excitment for Pope Francis’ upcoming trip to Iraq, an aid worker based in Erbil said.
Davide Bernocchi, Catholic Relief Services’ country representative for Iraq, said: “People are really hopeful and grateful for this visit. This country has been at the center of attention for bad news for so many years unfortunately, and now they are really happy to be the center of the world’s attention for a few days because of this great and positive event.”
“It’s really not just the Christians; it is the whole of the Iraqi people who are waiting for this visit ... My sense is that -- with the exception of the small remnants of ISIS -- everyone else is really happy about this visit.”