Pope brings message of peace to torn Central African Republic

November 29, 2015 20:48

Pope Francis brought a message of peace to war-torn Central African Republic today, visiting a sprawling refugee camp and calling for unity in a country plagued by sectarian violence.

"I come to the Central African Republic as a pilgrim of peace and as an apostle of hope," the 78-year-old pontiff said on landing in one of Africa's poorest and most unstable countries, on a 24-hour visit fraught with concerns for his safety.

Cheers and singing erupted as his plane touched down at Bangui's international airport from Uganda on the final leg of his three-country tour of Africa, which he hailed as "the continent of hope." He began his visit Wednesday in Kenya.

For the short ride to the presidential palace in Bangui, the pontiff travelled in his open-topped popemobile, with huge crowds, many of them children and young people, cheering wildly as he passed, some waving branches in a sign of peace.

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