Pope Francis will visit Lesbos on 16 April and meet refugees, the Vatican said Thursday. The trip is aimed at showing solidarity with asylum-seekers, hundreds of thousands of whom have in the past year arrived on the Greek island at the frontline of Europe’s migration crisis.
Many of the refugees reaching Lesbos are fleeing the civil war in Syria but under a controversial deal, the European Union this month started returning newcomers to neighbouring Turkey.
Conditions for refugees have been deteriorating at an overcrowded centre on Lesbos which has been used to detain over 2,000 people since 20 March, pending a decision on their deportation, according to the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR.
Refugees were reported to be sleeping in the open Lesbos and to be short of food and many families have been scattered across Greece, adding to widespread anxiety and frustration, UNHCR warned last week.
Francis has repeatedly voiced support for refugees and has called on Catholic parishes around Europe to take in families. In 2013, he made an acclaimed visit - his first as pope - to the Italian island of Lampedusa, where hundreds of thousands of migrants have landed.
.jpg)
