Pope Francis offers refuge to jailed Suu Kyi: Report

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis has offered to give refuge on Vatican territory to Myanmar's detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Italian media said on Tuesday. "I asked for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and I met her son in Rome. I have proposed to the Vatican to give her shelter on our territory," the pope said according to an account of meetings with Jesuits in Asia during his trip there.

The Corriere della Sera daily published an article by Italian priest Antonio Spadaro giving extracts from these private meetings, which took place in Indonesia, East Timor and Singapore between Sept 2 and 13. "We cannot stay silent about the situation in Myanmar today. We must do something," the pope is reported as saying. Suu Kyi, 78, is serving a 27-year prison sentence on charges ranging from graft to not respecting Covid pandemic curbs.