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Ankara: When Pope Benedict XVI travels to Turkey next week, he will be protected by a massive security operation.
The Pope's visit comes amid fears it may touch off a renewed wave of anger over his recent comments linking Islam to violence.
Turkey - which is striving to show the world it is a modern nation ready to join the European Union - is sparing no effort to make sure the visit passes without a hitch: An army of snipers, bomb disposal experts, riot police and anti-terrorism agents will deploy at each of Benedict's stops.
Police helicopters will hover above the cities of Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir during the November 28-December 1 trip, while navy commandos with machine guns will patrol the waters of the Bosphorus Straits in inflatable boats.
Benedict's first trip to a Muslim nation comes at a time of heightened tensions between the West and Islam. And it is the pope himself who has recently been at the centre of those tensions.
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