PICS: The Defence Forces had to sleep in appalling conditions in Phoenix Park on Saturday night

They deserve better...

Pope Francis is in Phoenix Park on Sunday afternoon for the Papal mass, during which he asked for forgiveness for abuses carried out by the Catholic Church. Hundreds of thousands of people showed up for the mass in what is Pope Francis' last formal event in Ireland before his departure on Sunday evening. Gardaí and Defence Forces are at the event to ensure everything runs smoothly with such a large crowd in attendance. But rather than staying in proper accommodation, members of the Defence forces were forced to camp outside in the grounds of Phoenix Park in preparation for working at the event today checking tickets and performing other duties. The area they were forced to camp is covered in used syringes and needles and to top it all off, it was lashing rain most of the night so many of them were soaked waking up this morning. Despite spending the night outside on the sign ground, they went to work today checking tickets for the event. Speaking to JOE, a member of the Defence Forces who wishes to remain anonymous said: "After a night sleeping in needle laden grounds, these men and women will be out checking tickets for the day after getting drenched in the rain last night. It's disgraceful and embarrassing." JOE has reached out to the Defence Forces for comment on the incident.