Calls for Pope to mediate

OPPOSITION leader and self-declared Venezuelan president Juan Guaido yesterday called for Pope Francis to mediate in the country’s political crisis, echoing similar calls from his rival, President Nicolas Maduro.

Speaking to Italian news channel SkyTg24, Guaido, said he would be “happy to welcome” the pope in his country.

On Monday, Maduro said he had invited the pope to facilitate dialogue between him and the opposition.

In a statement issued yesterday, the Vatican said, “the Holy Father has always reserved and therefore is reserving for himself the possibility to verify the will of both parties, to see if the conditions are in place to pursue this path”. |

pictured,