Pope Francis' autobiography, titled "Hope," will be released in bookstores on January 14. In it, the Pontiff reveals that during his apostolic trip to Iraq (March 5–8, 2021), he escaped two suicide bombings, one of which was carried out by a woman. “Almost everyone advised me against that trip", writes the Pope, “but I wanted to see it through. I felt I had to. I felt the need to visit our grandfather Abraham, the common ancestor of Jews, Christians, and Muslims". "The police", Pope Francis continues, "had informed the Vatican Gendarmerie of a report from the British secret services: a woman laden with explosives was on her way to Mosul to blow herself up during the papal visit. A van had also set off at full speed with the same intent". Despite these warnings, the visit’s program remained unchanged and included intense moments such as the meeting with Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Najaf. An significant visit that, fortunately, did not result in the two suicide bombers mentioned by the secret services going into action. However, the Pope had not forgotten about the alarm and requested information from the Vatican Gendarmerie. “The commander replied laconically: ‘They’re no longer here.’ The Iraqi police had intercepted them and caused them to detonate. This struck me deeply. This too was the poisoned fruit of war".