Claypole (Argentina) (AFP) – Thousands of people wait this Monday on the outskirts of Buenos Aires to greet Pope Leo

First modification: 11/09/2026 - 13:14

Leo XIV arrived in Argentina on Sunday from Uruguay, the first stage of a tour that will end in Peru. In his first speech in Buenos Aires he asked that growth reach those most in need and respect those who think differently, a weighty message to President Javier Milei, who attacks critics and whose adjustment the Church questions for its harshness.

Since early morning, families and groups of friends were stationed with chairs on both sides of the path that the pontiff will walk in Claypole, south of Buenos Aires. At the doors of the Cottolengo Don Orione, people hug each other and wave Argentine and Vatican flags, while a band alternates religious songs with prayers from the stage of a neighboring park.

Ana Trucco, a 22-year-old student, says she came closer to faith by reading Francis' encyclicals. "We must always be thinking about the most humble of our country who are being so abandoned today," he told AFP. "That Pope Leo comes with the legacy of Francis to speak to those people seems very important to me."

The cuts by Javier Milei's government in care for people with disabilities have been one of the focuses of protest against his adjustment policy since he took office in December 2023.

After negotiations in which the Catholic Church participated, the ruling party and the opposition agreed on a project to guarantee the financing of benefits. Deputies approved it in October and it must still be voted on in the Senate.

At the Cottolengo, Leo XIV will speak a few words and meet outdoors with the residents and staff of the home. Two residents will give their testimony before the pope takes the floor and gives the blessing.

In this humble neighborhood on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, some neighbors turned their houses into improvised stands selling food or flags with the face of Leo XIV.

In the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Palermo, where a mass will be celebrated, thousands lined up early to enter, including many families with children. Groups of faithful arrived in buses organized by their parishes. On some corners, young people with guitars cheered up the wait with songs and clapping.

"What we need most is unity, we are so divided," said Soledad Troncoso, a 67-year-old retiree who arrived from Wilde, on the southern outskirts, with her sister and several neighbors, on the verge of crying. "May his word endure, may it bring blessing to this country where so much is suffered."

© 2026 AFP

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