Nineveh prepares to receive the Pope

Shafaq News / the security authorities in Nineveh began on Friday implementing its plan to secure Pope Francis' visit to the Governorate.

A security source told Shafaq News Agency that all movements are tied in Mosul until the Pope leaves the City.

Mosul begins a total curfew due to Coronavirus Pandemic.

The source explained, "The measures included total closing of all the entrances to Mosul, except for urgent cases."

"A special force had arrived two days before from the capital Baghdad to secure the Pope in Hosh Al-Bayaa and the churches surrounding it in the old Mosul, in addition to the town of Baghdida (Bakhdida).”

Pope Francis starts a historic trip to Iraq on Friday, defying security fears and the pandemic.

The Pope left Rome and it’s supposed to arrive within four hours.

During his four-day visit, the 84-year-old Pope will reach out to Shiite Muslims when he meets Iraq's top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani.

Security will be tight in Iraq, thousands of security forces spread around the Country to protect him.

The pope's visit has deeply touched Iraq's Christians, whose numbers have collapsed over years of persecution and sectarian violence, from 1.5 million in 2003 to fewer than 400,000 today.