Pope Francis: appeal for Iran and Pakistan (full text)

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis appealed for solidarity with those affected by the earthquake that struck Iran and Pakistan on Tuesday afternoon. In his appeal, which came during the course of the weekly General Audience on Wednesday in St Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Pope Francis said that he had “[L]earned with sadness of the violent earthquake that has struck the peoples of Iran and Pakistan, bringing death, suffering and destruction.” Listen:

Pope Francis went on to offer prayers to God for the victims and for all those who are in pain and to express his, “closeness to the Iranian and the Pakistani people.” Seismologists say the quake was the strongest to strike Iran in more than 50 years, though details about the extent of damage have been slow to emerge. Fars news agency said that the cities of Khash and Saravan, both less than 150 km from the epicenter, suffered no serious damage. Across the border in Pakistan, authorities report that as manay as 34 people were killed and roughly 80 others injured in the Mashkel district of Balochistan province. Below, please find the full text of the appeal from Pope Francis

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“I learned with sadness of the violent earthquake that has struck the peoples of Iran and Pakistan, bringing death, suffering and destruction. I raise a prayer to God for the victims and for all those who are in pain and I wish to express my closeness to the Iranian and the Pakistani people.”