Pope Francis meets with UAE Crown Prince, welcomed by 130, 000 interreligious worshippers

In what has been dubbed a historical trip, Pope Francis met with the United Arab Emirates Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Monday, marking the start of a visit as the first head of the Catholic Church to set foot on the Arabian Peninsula.

Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the UAE’s Vice President and ruler of Dubai, also attended the meeting at the presidential palace in the capital Abu Dhabi, which took place after the pope was welcomed with military honours and a flying squadron.

Revealing the details of the meeting, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces said they discussed with the Pope about “enhancing cooperation, consolidating dialogue, tolerance, human coexistence & important initiatives to achieve peace, stability and development for peoples and societies.”

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According to reports, roughly 130,000 interreligious worshippers are expected to gather in a sports stadium, many coming from neighbouring countries, for an open-air Mass with the Pope later in the day.

Meanwhile, the visit by the Pope Francis (Head of the Catholic Church) to the UAE has been applauded by United Sates Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Expressing his delight, an excited Pompeo expressed the United States’ applause for the visit to the UAE, describing it as “historic moment for religious freedom”.

Pompeo wrote on his Twitter handle today: “The United States applauds @Pontifex arrival in UAE as an historic moment for religious freedom.”

He added: “The first Holy Mass by a Pope in the Arabian Peninsula promotes peace and understanding between two of the world’s great religions.”

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