Italy Pope Francis back in Rome after Southeast Asia trip
From the jungles of Papua New Guinea to the skyscrapers of Singapore: Pope Francis landed back in Rome on Friday after his twelve-day trip through Asia and the Pacific region.
13.09.2024, 19:32
SDA
The Singapore Airlines plane with the Pope on board landed at Rome Fiumicino Airport in the evening. The head of the Catholic Church had visited Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore since September 2.
In his speeches there, the Pope advocated peace and dialog between states, cultures and religions as well as the protection of the environment. The highlights of Francis' longest trip abroad to date included a large mass with around 600,000 people in East Timor and an interfaith meeting in front of the largest mosque in South East Asia in the Indonesian capital Jakarta.
The 87-year-old Francis defied doubts about his health during the trip. In recent years, the Pope had to undergo an operation due to a hernia in his abdominal wall, among other things. He has frequently used a wheelchair for the past two years due to knee pain and recurring sciatica.
The 87-year-old's next trip is already planned for the end of September and will take him to Luxembourg and Belgium.
