Updated: March 5, 2021, 9:53 am
Pope Francis gives a blessing as he prepares to fly to Baghdad from Fiumicino’s International airport Leonardo da Vinci, near Rome (Cecilia Fabiano/ LaPresse/AP)
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Pope Francis was heading to Iraq on Friday to urge the country’s dwindling number of Christians to stay put and help rebuild the country after years of war and persecution, brushing aside the coronavirus pandemic and security concerns to make his first-ever papal visit.