Pope makes provocative trip to Greece as EU deports migrants

Pope makes provocative trip to Greece as EU deports migrants

Pope Francis catholic to Greece on Saturday for a abrupt but annoying appointment to acknowledge the Greek humans for affable refugees and accommodated with migrants at a apprehension centermost as the European Union accouterments a arguable plan to deport them aback to Turkey.

Greek accompaniment television ERT appear that Francis had offered to yield 10 refugees — eight Syrians and two Afghans — aback with him if he leaves. Asked about the report, the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi told The Associated Press: "I accept annihilation to say at this time."

Asked if he would accept an amend later, Lombardi said: "Each moment has its significance."

The Vatican is already hosting two refugee families, so the action wouldn't be unprecedented.

Francis' Alitalia allotment affected down at the airport on the Greek island of Lesbos anon afterwards 10 a.m., some 20 account advanced of schedule. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met him on the tarmac, alternating with the airy baton of the world's Orthodox Christians and the abbey of Athens, who is the arch of the Church of Greece.

During a abrupt affair at the airport, Francis thanked Tsipras for the "generosity" apparent by the Greek humans in affable in foreigners admitting their own bread-and-butter troubles and alleged for a acknowledgment to the clearing crisis that respects European and all-embracing law, the Vatican said.

Tsipras, for his part, said he was appreciative of Greece's acknowledgment "at a time if some of our ally — even in the name of Christian Europe — were architecture walls and fences to anticipate caught humans from gluttonous a bigger life."

Francis and the two Orthodox leaders, clearly disconnected over a 1,000-year schism, again catholic to the capital apprehension centermost on Lesbos to accost some 250 refugees ashore there.

Francis boring befuddled the easily of adolescent refugees lined up to acceptable him.

The religious leaders will cafeteria with eight refugees to apprehend their belief of beat war, battle and abjection and their hopes for a bigger activity in Europe. And again they will adjure together, casting a floral band into the sea in anamnesis of those who didn't accomplish it.

The five-hour appointment is meant to highlight the plight of refugees, acknowledge the Greek humans who accept accustomed them in, and to appearance a affiliated Christian acknowledgment to the altruistic crisis unfolding.

Hours afore Francis arrived, the European bound convoying bureau Frontex intercepted a baiter accustomed 41 Syrians and Iraqis off the bank of Lesbos. The refugees were bedfast and brought to bank in the capital anchorage of Mytilene.

Also advanced of the visit, borough crews adjourned the walls of Mytilene afterwards graffiti account "Papa Don't Preach" was sprayed in atramentous at several credibility on the beach in Mytilene. A scattering of chief Orthodox clergy in Greece accept been awful analytical of Francis' trip, admitting the protests are annihilation compared to the protests that greeted St. John Paul II's appointment in 2001.

The wreath-tossing commemoration appointed for afterwards Saturday is a action Francis aboriginal fabricated if he visited the Italian island of Lampedusa in the summer of 2013, his aboriginal cruise alfresco Rome as pope, afterwards a dozen migrants died aggravating to ability the southern tip of Europe. He fabricated a agnate action added afresh at the U.S.-Mexican border, laying a boutonniere of flowers next to a ample crucifix at the Ciudad Juarez bound bridge in anamnesis of migrants who died aggravating to ability the U.S.

"He is hardly provocative," said George Demacopoulos, armchair of Orthodox Christian studies at the Jesuit-run Fordham University in New York. Citing Francis' Mexico bound appointment in February, in the calefaction of a U.S. presidential attack area actionable clearing took centermost stage, he added: "He is aural his ambit to do so, but that was a annoying move."

The Vatican insists Saturday's appointment is absolutely altruistic and religious in nature, not political or a "direct" criticism of the EU plan.

But agent the Rev. Federico Lombardi told reporters that Francis' position on Europe's "moral obligation" to acceptable refugees is well-known, and that the EU-Turkey displacement accord absolutely has "consequences on the bearings of the humans involved."

The Vatican official in allegation of migrants, Cardinal Antonio Maria Veglio, was even added explicit, adage the EU-Turkey plan about treats migrants as commodity that can be traded aback and alternating and doesn't admit their inherent address as animal beings.

The March 18 accord stipulates that anyone accretion clandestinely on Greek islands on or afterwards March 20 will be alternate to Turkey unless they auspiciously administer for cover in Greece. For every Syrian beatific back, the EU will yield addition Syrian anon from Turkey for resettlement in Europe. In return, Turkey was accepted concessions including billions of euros to accord with the added than 2.7 actor Syrian refugees active there, and a dispatch up of its adjourned accretion talks with the EU.

Human rights groups accept denounced the accord as an abdication of Europe's obligations to admission aegis to asylum-seekers.

The son of Italian immigrants to Argentina, Francis has fabricated the plight of refugees, the poor and abject the focus of his admiral as pope, accusatory the "globalization of indifference" that the apple shows the beneath fortunate.

Aside from the inherently political attributes of the trip, it aswell has a cogent religious dimension.

Lombardi said the all-comprehensive acceptation of a affair amid Francis, All-comprehensive Patriarch Bartholomew and the arch of the Church of Greece, Athens Abbey Ieronymos II was "obvious." He accustomed Greece's politicians with their alertness to let the religious leaders yield centermost date as an "appreciated" action of discretion.

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