Thousands of worshippers battled the rain to join Pope Leo XIV as he celebrated mass in Istanbul on Saturday, the last full day of his visit to Turkey.

Earlier, the leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics visited Istanbul's Blue Mosque, huddled with local church leaders and met Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I at his palace on the banks of the Golden Horn estuary.

After two days of blue skies and sunshine, the heavens opened, but the downpour did little to dampen the enthusiasm of those in attendance, some of whom had travelled for hours to see Leo on his first overseas trip as pope.

Ahead of the ceremony, the streets were filled with umbrellas as people walked through the rain towards the stadium, the crowd giving off a palpable buzz of excitement.

"I'm going to the mas

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