Plot to attack Pope Francis I uncovered

On March 31, in an interview with the Italian daily Il Giornale, Mr. Dragan Lukac, Minister of the Interior of the Republic of Srpska, a Serbian entity in Bosnia-Herzegovina, warned of the risk of a terrorist attack on Pope Francis I when he visits Sarajevo on June 6.

Pope Francis I. (Source: AFP/VNA)

Mr Lukac confirmed that the security forces of the Republic of Srpska had some information about a plot by Islamic extremists to attack the Pope during his visit to Bosnia-Herzegovina, a Balkan country with a large Muslim population. However, he said that the authorities of this country were fully capable of ensuring the Pope's security during that visit.

The main concern, according to Mr Lukac, could be Bosnian Muslim fighters fighting in Iraq and Syria. "We have the full names of 150 people, but the number could be more, up to 350, including Bosnian Muslims in Western countries," he said.

Mr. Lukac said the main danger comes from Bosnian fighters in the Mudzahiri Ensarije Islamist group of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) organization operating in Syria, returning to the country before the Pope's visit and could cause security risks./.

According to VNA