Pope Francis turned 88 on Tuesday and marked the occasion with revelations that he almost didn’t make it. According to excerpts of his upcoming autobiography, suicide bombers had planned to attack him during his 2021 visit to Iraq, but were killed before striking.
Italian daily Corriere della Sera on Tuesday ran excerpts of “Hope: The Autobiography,” written with Italian author Carlo Musso, which is being released in more than 80 countries next month. The New York Times ran other excerpts Tuesday, Francis’ 88th birthday.
