Pope Francis on Wednesday claimed he feared mosquitoes more than people, laughing off security fears surrounding his trip to three African countries in the wake of recent terror attacks in France and Mali.
"To tell you the truth, the only thing I'm concerned about is the mosquitoes. Did you spring your spray?" he quipped to journalists who asked if he was concerned about security risks.
Answering the Alitalia pilot of his flight to Kenya, who promised the pontiff he would do his utmost to make sure he got to the war-torn Central African Republic (CAR) too, Francis replied: "I want to go to CAR, if you can't manage it, give me a parachute!"
The Pope and his entourage will spend the third and final leg of the visit in the CAR, amid acute concerns for his safety and that of civilians and UN peacekeepers, and where Francis is due to arrive Sunday from Uganda.
Francis will be the first pope to fly into a war-zone, where Christian and Muslim militias have been battling for months, and where he is scheduled to visit a mosque in one of the most dangerous districts of the capital, Bangui.
