Leo to become first pope to visit Algeria

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Leo XIV will become the first pope to visit Algeria on Monday, taking a message of dialogue with Islam on a trip that also represents a personal pilgrimage for the American pontiff.

Algeria is the first stop on an 11-day tour of four African nations, covering 18,000 kilometres and also taking in Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea from April 13 to 23.

No other pontiff has visited Algeria, a North African country where Islam is the state religion, and the 70-year-old's arrival is being eagerly awaited by the Catholic minority.

The visit also holds a strong personal dimension for Pope Leo, as modern-day Algeria was home to Saint Augustine (354-430), a great Christian theologian whose spiritual legacy permeates his pontificate.

As the world watches anxiously with war raging in the Middle East, peaceful coexistence will be at the heart of the pope's message in a country where 99 percent of its 47 million inhabitants are Muslim.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the pope's aim was to "address the Islamic world, but also to confront a common challenge of coexistence".

Algeria's constitution guarantees freedom of worship, although the authorities must approve both the place of worship and the preacher.

Yet human rights groups say the repression of religious minorities has continued in Algeria in recent years.

Three organisations -- Human Rights Watch, EuroMed Rights and MENA Rights Group -- issued a joint letter last week calling on the pontiff to push the issue during his visit.

Soft power

The trip has been hailed in the local press for its "symbolic and historical significance," extending far beyond Algeria's 9,000 Catholics.

For the government daily El Moudjahid, it is a symbol of "Algerian soft power", that reflects the country's "stability, its role as a regional mediator, and its capacity to engage in dialogue with global actors," the newspaper stated.

In Algiers Monday morning, Pope Leo will meet with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and deliver a speech to the authorities and the diplomatic corps.

No public appearances are planned in the capital, and the famous popemobile, the white vehicle pontiffs use to drive past crowds of the faithful, will remain at the airport, according to the Casbah Tribune news site.

In the afternoon, the pope will visit the Great Mosque of Algiers -- one of the largest mosques in the world -- and also meet with the Catholic community.

Leo will also pray privately in the chapel dedicated to 19 priests and nuns murdered during the dark decade of civil war (1992-2002).

However, he will not visit the Tibhirine monastery, whose monks were kidnapped and murdered in 1996, an event still shrouded in mystery.

Son of St Augustine

The most symbolic stop for the pope will be on Tuesday with a trip to the eastern city of Annaba, the one-time home of Saint Augustine, where Leo will hold a mass.

From the moment he became pope on May 8, 2025, following the death of Pope Francis, Leo has presented himself as a "son" of the famed theologian.

The former Robert Francis Prevost is a member of the Augustinian order, which was founded in the 13th century and is based on the ideals of communal living and sharing.

Father Fred Wekesa, rector of the Saint Augustine Basilica at Annaba, said Leo's visit was a "deeply significant moment" that would give his small flock a "message of encouragement and solidarity".

"All too often, some people view this country only through the lens of the 'dark years'," he added, alluding to the country's bloody civil war from 1992 to 2002, when 200,000 people were killed in the conflict between Islamists and security forces.

"With the Holy Father's visit... the whole world will see the hospitality and generosity of the Algerian people," said Wekesa.

"We are capable of living together in peace."