1 of 2 | Pope Leo XIV is welcomed at Yaounde Nsimalen International Airport in Yaounde, Cameroon, Wednesday. The pontiff is on the second leg of an 11-day apostolic journey to Africa. Photo by Luca Zennaro/EPA
Pope Leo XIV landed in Cameroon Wednesday, and English-speaking separatists in the country announced a pause in fighting to allow “safe travel passage.”
Several groups’ leaders said the three-day pause is in recognition of the “profound spiritual importance” of the visit and the need to protect civilian life.
Leo landed in Cameroon just before 3 p.m. WAT Wednesday and will stay until Saturday.
Unity Alliance, an organization that brings the fighting groups together, said it would facilitate the movement of people celebrating the visit.
Leo visited Algeria on Monday and Tuesday as a goodwill tour and to visit the ancient site of Hippo, where St. Augustine was bishop. His trip will last 11 days, and he will also visit Angola and Equatorial Guinea.
The trip to Africa is significant to the continent and the Catholic church. There are 14 new Catholic dioceses created in Africa in the past year, and the Catholic population has grown by 7 million.
The pope was welcomed to Yaoundé, Cameroon, by Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute. His first stop is the Presidential Palace, where he will meet with President Paul Biya before addressing the authorities, civil society and diplomatic corps.
Leo will then visit the Ngul Zamba Orphanage in Yaoundé, where he will greet the residents and staff. Then he will meet privately with the Cameroonian Bishops at the headquarters of the Episcopal Conference.
Leo will also travel to Bamenda, the capital of the North-West region of the country. Bamenda is the epicenter of the conflict between Anglophone separatists and the Francophone state government.
He will visit the St. Joseph Cathedral in Bamenda for a peace meeting.
Unity Alliance said pausing the fighting “reflects a deliberate commitment to responsibility, restraint and respect for human dignity, even in the context of ongoing conflict.”
But it said the papal visit should stay “spiritual” and “pastoral” and warned against politicization of the visit.
The government hasn’t responded to the pause in fighting, but it said security is tightened in areas where the pope will visit.
