The Vatican: Pope Francis on Sunday expressed his concern for the situation in Afghanistan and called for a peaceful dialogue to ensure the safety of civilians.
“Dear brothers and sisters, I join in the unanimous concern for the situation in Afghanistan. I ask all of you to pray with me to the God of peace so that the clamour of weapons might cease and solutions can be found at the table of dialogue. Only thus can the battered population of that countrymen, women, elderly and children – return to their own homes, and live in peace and security, in total mutual respect,” Pope Francis told believers at the weekly Angelus prayer.
Afghanistan has been seeing a spike in violence in the past weeks amid speedy territorial gains by the Taliban all over the country. On Sunday, the radical movement seized Kabul and started negotiations with the government on the transition of power.
