At the end of his weekly general audience on Wednesday, Pope Francis launched an appeal for the populations of Pakistan and Afghanistan, who have been struck by a devastating earthquake.
“We remain close to the peoples of Pakistan and Afghanistan who have been struck by a strong earthquake, which has caused numerous victims and terrible damage” Francis told pilgrims in Rome's St Peter's Square.
"May there be no lack of concrete solidarity for these, our brothers,” the pontiff stressed.
He urged prayers for those killed, injured and left homeless by Monday's magnitude-7.5 earthquake that struck the remote Hindu Kush Mountains on the Afghan-Pakistan border.
The earthquake killed at least 360 people and injured 2,000 in eastern Afghanistan and in northwest Pakistan, where most casualties occurred.
Aid has begun to trickle through to the remote quake-hit areas but desperate survivors have appealed for food and blankets as harsh weather, rugged terrain and pockets of militancy hamper rescue efforts.
