Five years after his first visit to the island of Lesbos in the midst of a migratory crisis, the Pope is once again on the move in a migrant camp on the Greek island.
Welcomed by many families and exiled children, wishing him ” Welcome “, Pope Francis arrived this Sunday morning in the migrant camp of the Greek island of Lesbos which has been facing a strong influx of refugees crossing the Mediterranean for several years.
After greeting those present to welcome him, the Sovereign Pontiff delivered a vibrant speech calling for an end to ” sinking of civilization “. The Mediterranean “ is turning into a cold cemetery with no tombstones », Also declared the pope in front of the migrants in the camp of Lesbos.
In a tent, he then listened to the songs of a choir of exiles, before being saddened that the Mediterranean, ” cradle of so many civilizations ” that is ” now like a mirror of death », Recalling« the crude images of the little bodies lying on the beaches “.
” Let us not allow the ‘mare nostrum’ to turn into a distressing ‘mare mortuum’, for this meeting place to become the theater of conflicts! Don’t let this sea of memories become the sea of oblivion “, He urged in front of the Greek President Katerína Sakellaropoúlou.
This stopover in Lesbos is faster than the visit made in 2006, recalled our special correspondent, Joël Bronner. Pope Francis must also go to the Mavrovouni camp, which still houses nearly 2,200 asylum seekers, in difficult conditions.
The Pope then returns to Athens, where he has already yesterday denounced a Europe ” torn by nationalist egoisms », To celebrate a mass in front of some 2,500 faithful in a huge concert hall.
The cause of the refugees is once again the cornerstone of the Pope’s 35th trip.
(And with AFP)