Sawt Falasteen - Tens of thousands in Rome for Vatican's Jubilee of Youth

The mass gathering is taking place just over two months after Leo XIV became the head of the Catholic Church and the first American pope.

Since Monday, groups of pilgrims -- chanting and draped in flags of their countries -- have flooded the streets of Italy's capital and the corners of the Vatican City.

An opening mass is scheduled at St Peter's Basilica later on Tuesday at 1700 GMT.

The Vatican had last week said it expected some half a million people from more than 150 countries to take part in the youth events -- that are dedicated to faith and culture.

The week will culminate with a giant mass led by Pope Leo on Sunday.

The Jubilee of Youth is aimed at young people aged between 18 and 35.

Pilgrims AFP spoke to said topics they most wanted to discuss at the events were wars, climate change, social inequalities and the dangers linked to AI.

"The most important topic for me is war. Everyone is talking about it, thinking about it, and we want to know what the pope thinks about it and what he expects from us," 25-year-old Tiago Santos, a pilgrim from Portugal, told AFP.

The event is taking place as tens of thousands have been killed in Gaza after almost two years of war with Israel and as UN groups warn of spreading starvation in the blocked territory.

In Ukraine, Russia's almost 3.5-year invasion has killed thousands, with Moscow continuing deadly attacks despite Western pressure to end its campaign.

For Teophanie Nasta, a 26-year-old Lebanese pilgrim who left her country for the first time, said that -- despite the conflicts in the Middle East -- she was filled with "faith in humanity by seeing so many young people" gathered for the church.

In an unprecedented move, the Vatican decided to dedicated a series of events to Catholic influencers -- a sign of growing importance of social media for the church.

Speaking to them on Tuesday morning, Pope Leo warned against the dangers of undermining "human dignity" in the AI era.

J.Saleh--SF-PST