Pope Francis and Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani met on 6 March 2021 for at most 40 minutes, part of the time alone except for interpreters, in the Shiite cleric’s modest home in the city of Najaf. Every detail was scrutinized ahead of time in painstaking, behind-the-scenes preparations that touched on everything from shoes to seating arrangements. Pope Francis said in a statement that there should be "unity" between followers of different religions.