VATICAN CITY (CNS): As battles raged in Baghdad last week, Pope John Paul II prayed for a quick end to the war in Iraq and the start of a ‘new era’ of forgiveness and peace.
Marking the 40th anniversary of the encyclical Pacem in Terris (‘Peace on Earth’), the Pope said on April 6 that he was deeply worried about all those involved in the Iraq war, especially non-combatants caught in the fighting between US-led forces and soldiers loyal to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
‘I am thinking especially of the defenceless civilian population, which in various cities has been subject to harsh suffering. I pray to God that this conflict ends quickly to make room for a new era of forgiveness, love and peace’ the Pope said at a noon blessing at the Vatican.
The fate of civilian victims in Iraq has been a constant theme of Catholic peace groups worldwide. Iraqi authorities said on April 6 that more than 1250 civilians had been killed in the conflict, and crowded hospitals in Baghdad said the number of injured was too numerous to count.
