Pope Francis will make lightning trip to Greek migrant island of Lesbos
Thu Apr 7, 2016 4:25pm EDT
VATICAN CITY | BY PHILIP PULLELLA
Pope Francis will make a lightning trip to the Greek island of Lesbos on April 16, the Vatican said on Thursday, a visit aimed at supporting refugees and drawing attention to the front line of Europe's migrant crisis.
Hundreds of thousands of refugees, many fleeing war in Syria, have poured onto the Aegean island over the past year, triggering Europe's biggest humanitarian crisis in generations.
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The Vatican said details of the day trip were still being worked out but that the pope would meet refugees along with Bartholomew, the Istanbul-based spiritual head of the world's Orthodox Christians, and Ieronymos II, head of the Greek Orthodox Church.
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Lombardi said the pope's trip to Lesbos was "a joint initiative" that will "show that various Christian churches are united when faced with great emergencies".
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-greece-pope-idUSKCN0X4165
1:16 video at link.
