ROME—Pope Benedict XVI flew out of Rome on Thursday, heading for Madrid where he will attend the Catholic World Youth Day festival, expected to draw more than one million people from across the world.
Benedict left Rome’s Ciampino airport shortly after 9:30 a.m. (0730 GMT). It will be his third visit to Spain as pope.
He will be welcomed in the afternoon by pilgrims at a ceremony in the Plaza Cibeles in central Madrid, where protesters opposed to the visit clashed with police Wednesday.
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