Straight after the official welcome ceremony at Ankara’s International Airport on Thursday morning, Pope Leo XIV visited the city’s Mausoleum of Atatürk—or Anıtkabir (literally, "memorial tomb")—accompanied by an official delegation including the Minister, the Vice-Governor, and the Commander of the Mausoleum.

The Pope signed the Mausoleum's Book of Honor and wrote, "I give thanks to God for being able to visit Türkiye, and I invoke upon this country and its people an abundance of peace and prosperity.”

Pope Leo is on the first day of hissix-day visit to Türkiye and Lebanon, his first Apostolic Visit abroad. The Memorial holds great significance for Turks, as it honours the founder of modern Türkiye and symbolizes the nation’s birth, modernization, and secularism.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is revered as the “Father of the Turks” for leading the Turkish National Movement, establishing the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, and serving as its first president.

The site is also the final resting place of İsmet İnönü, the second President of Türkiye, who was interred there after he died in 1973. His tomb faces the Atatürk Mausoleum, on the opposite side of the Ceremonial Ground.

There are four main parts to Anıtkabir: the Road of Lions, the Ceremonial Plaza, the Hall of Honour (location of Atatürk's tomb), and the Peace Park that surrounds the monument.