Pope Francis on Friday called for an end to violence in Iraq as he arrived in the country for a historic visit.
The 84-year-old pontiff said he is making the trip, which has been planned for several years, as a "pilgrim of peace".
"Let the guns fall silent,” he said during a speech at the Presidential Palace in Baghdad.
The Pope said his trip to the "cradle of civilisation" was "long-awaited'.
“Enough violence, enough polarisation ... let us help the citizens who want to build this nation,” he said.
On the first papal trip to Iraq, the Pope urged the country to "combat [the] scourge of corruption, [and] promote justice."
He also asked the international community "not to withdraw their outstretched hand of friendship from the Iraqi people".
Iraqi President Barham Salih and his wife, Sarbagh Salih, warmly welcomed the Pope to the palace.
"Iraqis are proud of their long history of religious coexistence between the various sects," Mr Salih said.
Iraq has 14 recognised Christian sects, but two decades of back-to-back conflicts left ancient Christian communities that were once a vibrant and integral part of the landscape scattered and in ruins.
"Christians in Iraq have endured so much in the last decade. Their exodus continues, and many have left their homes and the country, which will have severe consequences for the future of the state," he said.
"We cannot have the region without any Christians," Mr Salih told a room of Iraqi officials, civil society members and the diplomatic corps
Earlier on Friday, Pope Francis arrived in Baghdad after a four-and-half-hour journey from Rome in an Alitalia Airbus 330 carrying his entourage and journalists.
Buffeted by strong winds, the pontiff descended the steps from the plane to meet Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi.
Both wore face masks and chatted as they walked the red carpet leading to a welcoming ceremony inside the airport, where musicians played a new song written specially for the Pope's arrival.
The two men were all smiles as they walked through the performance of traditional Iraqi songs and dances while flag-waving spectators lined the hall.
"We, the Iraqi people and government, look forward to welcoming His Holiness Pope Francis. Mesopotamia has always been and will remain a historic meeting place for common human values," Mr Al Kadhimi said on Twitter before the Pope's arrival.
"Welcome to the land of Sumer, Babylon, Assyria, the land of prophets and civilisations," he said.
The Pope also met with Iraq’s Christian leaders in the capital later on Friday, including at the Our Lady of Salvation church, where dozens of people were killed in a terrorist attack in 2010.
He said a prayer for those who lost their lives.
"We are gathered in this Cathedral of Our Lady of Salvation, hallowed by the blood of our brothers and sisters who here paid the ultimate price for their fidelity to the Lord and his church," the Pope said.
"May the memory of their sacrifice inspire us to renew our own trust in the power of the cross and it's saving message of forgiveness, reconciliation, and rebirth," he said.
The pontiff called on Iraqis to ensure they have "one prayer, one mind, one hope" to achieve unity and peace.
The death of worshippers is a "powerful reminder that inciting war, hateful attitudes, violence, or the shedding of blood are incompatible with authentic religious teachings", he said.
The Pope then led a prayer with Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans and head of the Chaldean Catholic Church, before leaving. The convoy then made a brief stop at the Vatican embassy in the capital.
On Saturday morning, the Pope will visit Ayatollah Ali Al Sistani, the Shiite leader in Iraq, in the city of Najaf and later attend an interreligious meeting at the ancient site of Ur.
He will visit the north of the country on Sunday, celebrating Mass in Erbil and saying prayers in Mosul, before departing on March 8.
There will be a farewell ceremony in Baghdad before the Pope leaves for Rome.
Christians in Iraq trace their roots back to the beginning of the faith. But after the US-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003 and the rise of violence that resulted in civil war, the size of the community has decreased tremendously.
An estimated million Christians left Iraq in the past decade.
It is difficult to know the exact number of Christians still living in the country after years of war and conflict in which many were either killed or had to flee to other countries.
There are about 500,000 Christians left in Iraq, Cardinal Sako told The National. At one point, Christians represented 20 per cent of the Iraqi population, but the proportion dropped to 10 per cent and is now a mere 2 per cent, he said.
Iraqis are hoping the Pope’s visit will encourage Iraqi Christians to return home or strengthen the will of those still there to stay in the country.
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
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Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Wonka
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$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
A general guide to how active you are:
Less than 5,000 steps - sedentary
5,000 - 9,999 steps - lightly active
10,000 - 12,500 steps - active
12,500 - highly active
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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2252 – Dh 50
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
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Fixtures
Tuesday - 5.15pm: Team Lebanon v Alger Corsaires; 8.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Pharaohs
Wednesday - 5.15pm: Pharaohs v Carthage Eagles; 8.30pm: Alger Corsaires v Abu Dhabi Storms
Thursday - 4.30pm: Team Lebanon v Pharaohs; 7.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Carthage Eagles
Friday - 4.30pm: Pharaohs v Alger Corsaires; 7.30pm: Carthage Eagles v Team Lebanon
Saturday - 4.30pm: Carthage Eagles v Alger Corsaires; 7.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Team Lebanon
Stage results
1. Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) Deceuninck-QuickStep 4:39:05
2. Michael Matthews (AUS) Team BikeExchange 0:00:08
3. Primoz Roglic (SLV) Jumbo-Visma same time
4. Jack Haig (AUS) Bahrain Victorious s.t
5. Wilco Kelderman (NED) Bora-Hansgrohe s.t
6. Tadej Pogacar (SLV) UAE Team Emirates s.t
7. David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ s.t
8. Sergio Higuita Garcia (COL) EF Education-Nippo s.t
9. Bauke Mollema (NED) Trek-Segafredo s.t
10. Geraint Thomas (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers s.t
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The specs
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Children who witnessed blood bath want to help others
Aged just 11, Khulood Al Najjar’s daughter, Nora, bravely attempted to fight off Philip Spence. Her finger was injured when she put her hand in between the claw hammer and her mother’s head.
As a vital witness, she was forced to relive the ordeal by police who needed to identify the attacker and ensure he was found guilty.
Now aged 16, Nora has decided she wants to dedicate her career to helping other victims of crime.
“It was very horrible for her. She saw her mum, dying, just next to her eyes. But now she just wants to go forward,” said Khulood, speaking about how her eldest daughter was dealing with the trauma of the incident five years ago. “She is saying, 'mama, I want to be a lawyer, I want to help people achieve justice'.”
Khulood’s youngest daughter, Fatima, was seven at the time of the attack and attempted to help paramedics responding to the incident.
“Now she wants to be a maxillofacial doctor,” Khulood said. “She said to me ‘it is because a maxillofacial doctor returned your face, mama’. Now she wants to help people see themselves in the mirror again.”
Khulood’s son, Saeed, was nine in 2014 and slept through the attack. While he did not witness the trauma, this made it more difficult for him to understand what had happened. He has ambitions to become an engineer.
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
Ferrari
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