In his Easter message, the Pope called for an end to the bloodshed in Syria

The head of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis today called for an end to the "extermination that is going on in Syria", for reconciliation in the Holy Land and encouraged dialogue on the Korean Peninsula. Addressing from the balcony of St. Peter's Church, the Pope, in the traditional "Message to the City and the World" (Urbi et Orbi), called for peace in the whole world, first in "beloved and suffering Syria, whose population is exhausted by a war with no end in sight". . The Pope called on all political and military officials to immediately "stop the ongoing extermination, while respecting humanitarian law and access to help the most vulnerable". Francis also called for reconciliation in "the Holy Land, which these days is affected by a conflict in which vulnerable people are not spared". Sixteen Palestinians were killed in the conflict between the Palestinians and the Israeli army on Friday. The Pope encouraged dialogue on the Korean Peninsula, where there is an atmosphere of reduced tension after two years of North Korea's nuclear and ballistic tests. Last night he led a vigil before Easter and then baptized eight people, including a Nigerian (31) who caused media attention last year when he managed to stop an armed assailant trying to rob a supermarket. St. Peter's Square, where there are several thousand worshipers, is secured by the police, and is decorated with 50.000 tulips, roses and daffodils donated by the Netherlands.