Despite the region’s relevance to Christianity, the pontiff’s Iraq trip from March 5 to March 8, 2021, was considered risky because of the persisting COVID-19 pandemic and instances of violence throughout the battle-scarred country. “Almost everyone advised me against that trip,” Francis reportedly wrote in “Hope.”

Security forces thwarted a pair of assassination attempts against Pope Francis — including a suicide bomber — during his March 2021 visit to Iraq, the pontiff shared in his new memoir.

Pope Francis revealed an attempt on his life was foiled during his historic trip to Iraq, according to reports, reflecting on the event in his upcoming memoir.

In an excerpt from his forthcoming autobiography, Francis said two suicide bombers had been planning to attack one of his events in Mosul.

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis turned 88 on Tuesday and marked the occasion with revelations that he almost didn’t make it. According to excerpts of his upcoming autobiography, suicide bombers had planned to attack him during his 2021 visit to Iraq, but were killed before striking.

In a new autobiography, Pope Francis revealed that he escaped two assassination attempts during his visit to Iraq in March 2021, including one involving a young woman who was believed to be attempting a suicide bombing.

Pope Francis assassination plot in Iraq foiled after British intelligence tip-off - Two suicide bombers had planned to target Pontiff on 2021 visit to Iraq

A woman packed with explosives...was heading to Mosul to blow herself up,' pontiff recalls in upcoming autobiography; would-be bombers apparently killed by police, Francis says

According to Pope Francis, a bid to kill him during a 2021 visit to Iraq was foiled following a tip from British intelligence.

Pope Francis was the target of a horrifying assassination plot during a trip to Iraq, according to revelations in his upcoming autobiography. The attempt on his life was averted following a timely tip-off from British intelligence. The pontiff set off for a three-day visit to Iraq during the coronavirus pandemic in March 2021.

The primary rebel force that led the lightning offensive against the regime of President Bashar Assad is the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, which had ties to al-Qaida. But the leader of the transitional Syrian government -- Mohammad al-Bashir -- has promised to respect the rights "of all people and all sects in Syria."