Pope Benedict XVI waves from the popemobile, escorted by security guards, as he arrives for the weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican. A man tried to jump into the uncovered popemobile Wednesday and was wrestled to the ground by security officers. The pope was not hurt and didn't even appear to notice that the man had jumped over a barricade.

Vatican City ? A German man jumped a security barrier and grabbed the back of Pope Benedict XVI’s open popemobile before being swarmed by security guards Wednesday – reviving a debate over whether the pontiff needs stronger protection during his public audiences.

Benedict was not harmed and appeared not to even notice, never looking back as he waved to the crowd in St. Peter’s Square. But security analysts said he exposes himself to undue risk by appearing at the same place and time each week in an open jeep.

“If he cannot change the route or the hour, he must use at least a protected car,” said Claude Moniquet, head of the European Strategic Intelligence and Security Center, a Brussels-based think tank on security issues.

The man vaulted onto a wooden barrier and then over in an apparent attempt to get into the white popemobile. One guard grabbed him as he leaped, but the man managed to grab hold of the vehicle before security men trailing the car pinned him to the ground.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said the man was a 27-year-old German who showed signs of “mental imbalance.” He declined to identify him.

The incident rekindled memories of the assassination attempt against Pope John Paul II by Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Agca in 1981. John Paul suffered a severe abdominal wound as he rode in an open jeep at the start of his weekly audience in the Vatican piazza – the same event as Wednesday’s.

Moniquet, a security expert who has written about protecting heads of state, said leaders like the pope have to balance proximity to the public with their own need for security in today’s violent world.

But unlike other leaders who make occasional forays into the public domain, the pope has a regular appointment with the faithful each Wednesday morning – precisely the type of routine security guards try to avoid.

But Vatican officials said there were no plans to change the long-standing use of open vehicles for the weekly audience at the Vatican. When the pope travels abroad, he does use a popemobile outfitted with bulletproof glass.