Former PM's wife has taken the Pope's chair: local official

Shafaq News/ The chair Pope Francis used during his visit to the ancient city of Urr in southern Iraq has been taken by former Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi's wife, the head of Dhi Qar's archeology and heritage department, Shamel al-Rumaidh, revealed on Sunday.

"Following the pope's visit to the ancient city of Urr, a team from the cabinet's secretariat transferred the chair to their private jet," he told Shafaq News Agency, "they informed us later that the chair will be taken by a Christian figure for personal use. The figure was Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi's wife."

"Despite the government's decision to put the chair in a museum, the Dhi Qar museum is yet to receive anything," he concluded.

On March 5, 2021, Pope Francis, leader of the Catholic Church, embarked on a historic four-day trip to Iraq, where he met with officials, religious leaders, and ordinary Iraqis of all faiths. On March 6, Pope Francis visited Ur, a Sumerian city that dates back 6,000 years, which, according to the Judaic, Christian and Islamic traditions, is the birthplace of the patriarch Ibrahim or Abraham.