(ANSA-AFP) - BRATISLAVA, JUL 20 - Only fully vaccinated
faithful will be allowed to attend public events during Pope
Francis's visit to Slovakia, officials said on Tuesday,
according to Slovak media reports. "We have been informed that
from a security point of view and in terms of technical
possibilities, this is the only real way not to radically limit
the number of participants," Stanislav Zvolensky, archbishop of
Bratislava, was quoted as saying. Health Minister Vladimir
Lengvarsky said the aim was to "enable as many people... as
possible to participate". The pope has been vaccinated and has
urged people to get the jab, calling opposition to vaccines "a
suicidal denial". The pope has also called for vaccines to be
shared with the poorest countries in the world, saying they were
"an essential tool" in the fight against the pandemic. Francis
has said he will visit Slovakia from September 12 to 15 after a
brief stop in Hungary to celebrate a mass in Budapest. Francis's
visit to Slovakia will include the cities of Bratislava, Presov,
Kosice and Sastin, the Vatican has said. (ANSA-AFP).
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