Thousands of Christians from across the region packed Bahrain National Stadium in Riffa on Saturday for Pope Francis’ main Mass as part of his official visit to the country.
Footage features pilgrims wearing white caps waving the yellow and white flags of the Holy See while Francis can be seen arriving in his popemobile before Mass.
According to media reports citing the Vatican, local organizers estimated some 30,000 people attended the service. Organisers had said that pilgrims had come from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Gulf countries.
After the Mass, Francis reportedly met with young people at the Sacred Heart school, which dates from the 1940s and is affiliated with the church of the same name that was the first Catholic Church built in the Gulf.
The visit is Pope’s second to a Gulf Arab country, following his 2019 trip to Abu Dhabi, where he signed a document promoting Catholic-Muslim fraternity.
