Iraqi Shi’Ite leader to meet with Pontiff?

August 28, 2017

A spokesman for Muqtada al Sadr says that the Iraqi Shi’ite leader will meet with Pope Francis during a tour of Europe.

The Vatican has not confirmed plans for a meeting.

The leader of a powerful Shi’ite minority in Iraq, al Sadr has long been a principal foe of US involvement in the country, and Sadrist militia troops clashed with American forces in bloody combat in 2004. In recent years he has disarmed his forces and professed a commitment to non-violence, saying that he hopes to help rebuild Iraq.

 

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Further information:

• Spokesman for the Sadrist Movement: Muqtada al-Sadr will pay a visit to the Vatican (Fides)