Pope Francis will visit South Sudan in July after repeatedly delaying his trip due to security concerns in a country still emerging from a post-independence civil war.
A statement from the Vatican holy see Press, on Thursday said the pope would be in South Sudan July 5-7 after visiting the Democratic Republic of Congo July 2-5 on the same trip.
In South Sudan, he will visit the capital, Juba, and in the DRC, he will visit Kinshasa and Goma.
About Sudan
In July 2011, South Sudan officially split Sudan, but civil war erupted two years later, causing 400,000 deaths. The two main sides signed a peace deal in 2018.
pope Francis has always wanted to visit South Sudan – a predominantly Christian country – but the trip has been repeatedly postponed because of the instability there.
In 2019, the Pope hosted South Sudan’s opposing leaders at a Vatican retreat where he knelt and kissed their feet as he urged them not to return to conflict.
South Sudan leaders in quest for Peace
This week, UNMISS and the UN Human Rights Office published a report on the deaths of more than 400 civilians during fighting last year between two rebel groups in Tambura County, Western Equatorial State.
In the DRC, security is not expected to be an issue in Kinshasa, but it may be in Goma, which is in the restive eastern region. Italy’s ambassador, his bodyguard and driver were killed in an ambush north of Goma last year.
The government has declared a state of siege and placed some provinces under martial law to tackle armed groups carrying out attacks in the region. They include the ISIL-linked Allied Democratic Forces against which Congo and Uganda are currently carrying out a joint military operation.
