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Pope Benedict Tackled Before Christmas Eve Mass
By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 24, 2009
Modified Dec 24, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 24, 2009
Modified Dec 24, 2009
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During Christmas Eve mass at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI was tackled by a woman who jumped a barrier. The pope was apparently unhurt, though shaken.The NY Times reports, per a Vatican spokesman, "the pope quickly got back on his feet and celebrated Mass before thousands of people, urging them in his homily to become 'truly vigilant people.' Television images showed a woman in red leap toward Benedict as he began to walk up the central aisle, as the police and bodyguards scrambled to the aide of the 82-year-old pope."
Cardinal Roger Etchegaray was also knocked down by the woman; he was taken to a hospital for observation. Spokesman Rev. Ciro Benedettin said that the woman seemed "unstable." Here's video of security rushing to the pope (you can't see the pope, but you can see parishioners taking photographs with cameras and cellphones).
The Post reports, "It was the second year in a row there was a security breach at the service. At the end of last year’s Mass a woman who had jumped the barriers got close to the pope but was quickly blocked on the ground by security. Benedettini said it was not immediately known if the same woman was behind Thursday’s incident." And a week and a half ago, Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi was attacked by a man in Milan.
Update: Here's amateur video of the woman jumping into the aisle:
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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