Coverage plans for Pope Francis trip to Iraq from March 5-8

EDITORS: Pope Francis arrives in Iraq this week, the first papal visit since the pandemic began and the first-ever papal visit to Iraq. The March 5-8 trip is expected to provide a spiritual boost to Iraq’s beleaguered Christians while furthering the Vatican’s bridge-building efforts with the Muslim world. The Associated Press plans comprehensive coverage, including live video. Here is a look at AP’s coverage plans. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan. Text, photos, video and graphics can be found on AP Newsroom. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3: VATICAN-IRAQ: Pope Francis is brushing aside a coronavirus lockdown and rising infections to become the first pope to visit Iraq, seeking to encourage its dwindling Christian communities that date from the time of Christ and were violently persecuted during the reign of the Islamic State. Given that religious gatherings have become super-spreader events throughout the pandemic, organizers will be balancing Francis’ tendency to draw crowds with social distancing measures and limits on participation in papal events. By Nicole Winfield. With photos. IRAQ-POPE-SISTANI: The upcoming historic meeting between Pope Francis and a revered Shiite Muslim leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, has been months in the making with painstaking behind-the-scenes preparations. Their planned conversation in al-Sistani’s modest home in the southern Iraqi town of Najaf has already drawn the ire of majority Shiite Iran and heightened a long-standing rivalry between Najaf and Iran’s Qom over which town stands at the center of the Shiite world. With the stakes high, the Vatican and Najaf have gone back and forth on almost every element of the meeting from the removal of shoes to seating arrangements. By Qassim Abdul-Zahra and Samya Kullab. With photos. THURSDAY, MARCH 4: IRAQ-POPE-CHURCH MASSACRE SURVIVOR: Louis Clemis was a church youth leader, attending Mass at Our Lady of Salvation Church in Baghdad in October 2010 when six extremists stormed in and attacked worshippers. Dozens were killed in the massacre that changed Clemis’ life forever. Still suffering from hearing loss 11 years later, he says the harrowing day planted the seeds of Christian mistrust of Muslims. Pope Francis’ planned visit to the church brings hope that Iraq’s Christians can finally live in peace with their neighbors. By Samya Kullab. With photo and video. FRIDAY, MARCH 5: VATICAN-IRAQ: Spot coverage of the first day of the trip. Pope Francis flies to Baghdad. He is greeted by the prime minister at the airport, followed by an official welcome ceremony at the presidential palace and a meeting with the president. Later in the day, he meets with officials, civil society groups, clergy at Our Lady of Salvation Church. By Nicole Winfield. With photos/edited and live video coverage of the day’s events. IRAQ-CHRISTIANS-TIMELINE: A look at disasters Iraq’s Christians have endured, from the U.S.-led invasion of 2003 to the brutal rule of Islamic State militants. SATURDAY, MARCH 6: VATICAN-IRAQ: Spot coverage of the second day of the trip. Pope Francis meets in Najaf with Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, hosts an inter-religious meeting in the Plain of Ur and celebrates Mass at the Chaldean Cathedral in Baghdad. By Nicole Winfield. Photos/edited and live video coverage expected in the Plain of Ur and at the Baghdad cathedral. Note that the meeting between the pope and Sistani is likely closed to coverage.