Pope Francis to lead holy mass in Air Defense Stadium during his visit to Egypt

CAIRO – 22 April 2017: Pope Francis, the Pope of Roman Catholic Church, will lead the holy mass in the Air Defense Stadium instead of Cairo Stadium as previously scheduled, Bishop Rafiq Gereish, the head of the Catholic Church's media office said.

Gereish told youm7 that Air Deference Stadium is much wider, so it could accommodate more people who are willing to attend the mass and receive the Pope’s blessing.
In November 2014, President Sisi met with Pope Francis at the Apostolic Palace in Rome. Both sides discussed the resumption of dialogue between Al-Azhar and the Vatican by reactivating the Al-Azhar-Vatican joint committee for dialogue.

The dialogue was suspended in 2011 after the former Roman Catholic Pope, Benedict XVI, called for protecting Coptic Christians in Egypt following an attack in Alexandria, on the Mediterranean Sea, in 2011. On the eve of 2011, a bomb detonated outside the Two Saints Church and claimed lives of 23 people, injuring more than 90 others.