Over 90,000 invitations to meeting with pope in Kaunas issued

Authorities have issued over 90,000 invitations to attend a meeting with Pope Francis in a park in Kaunas next Sunday.

"We expect large numbers of people. Over 90,000 invitations to Kaunas' Santaka Park have been issued to date," Vaida Spangelevičiūtė-Kneižienė, coordinator of the papal visit at the Archdiocese of Kaunas, said on Monday.

She would not disclose the maximum number of people who will be allowed to attend the event in Lithuania's second-biggest city.

Darius Pliavga, deputy chief police commissioner of the county of Kaunas, said there would be a heavy police presence during the pope's visit.

"The aim is to protect the faithful who will participate and to ensure that there are no thefts and that every lost child is found," he said.

Pope Francis is to visit Lithuania next Saturday and Sunday.