Abu Dhabi National Geographic to broadcast a documentary on the Pope in the Emirates

Entitled "The Peace Visit", it retraces the highlights of the Gulf trip.  Divided into three parts, the feature shows the preparatory work, the meetings and the implications on the population and local institutions.  An event that is part of the initiatives for the Year of Tolerance.

Abu Dhabi (AsiaNews) - Tomorrow, the National Geographic satellite channel in Abu Dhabi will broadcast a documentary on the historic three-day visit by Pope Francis to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) last February.  Entitled "The Peace Visit", the feature film represents a diary of the first ever visit by a pontiff to a Gulf nation, which even today, months later, is remembered as an appointment of high religious and political value.

According to the producers, the documentary divides the trip into three parts and highlights the most significant events and the meetings that took place.  In addition to the words of the pontiff there are film contributions and interviews with citizens and government officials, who express their opinion on the value of the visit and the significance for the Emirates in the context of the Year of Tolerance.

The first part of the documentary will show early contacts between the UAE and the Holy See, up until the Pope’s acceptance of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces’ invitation to visit the UAE.

The second part focuses exclusively on Pope Francis’ visit to Abu Dhabi, where he met with the Grand Imam of Al Azhar and Chairman of the Muslim Council of Elders Dr Ahmed El Tayeb, and which led to the signing of a Human Fraternity Document, calling on people to unite to bring about inter-faith harmony and tolerance. In fact only a few days ago the establishment of a 'High Committee' was announced for the implemenation of the document.

The final part of the documentary captures the Papal Mass delivered at the Zayed Sports City stadium, in front of more than 100,000 attendees from around the world, where the Pope asked everyone to pray that the seeds sown may bear fruits of peace in the future.

The documentary will be broadcast tomorrow 5 September at 8pm.  National Geographic Abu Dhabi is the official Arabic section of the National Geographic Channel.  It is available only in Arabic and is aimed specifically at viewers of the Gulf and the Middle Eastern region and, over time, has become a reference point for information and entertainment.