BALADI NEWS
Pope Francis has expressed concern for the humanitarian situation in northwestern Syria and urged a negotiated end to years of fighting, in a letter delivered on Monday to Bashar al-Assad, Reuters reports.
The Vatican said the letter was handed over by Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, who heads the Vatican department for promoting human development.
The letter called for the safe return of millions displaced by years of fighting, the humane treatment of political prisoners and the resumption of negotiations to seek a political solution to the conflict.
“At the heart of this new initiative lies Pope Francis’ and the Holy See’s concern for the emergency humanitarian situation in Syria, in particular in Idlib Province,” Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said in a statement.
Syrian state news agency SANA reported that Assad had told Turkson it was important to put pressure on countries supporting "terrorists", a term Assad regime uses to describe the rebels seeking his downfall.
Since April 24, the Assad-Russia alliance has started the most barbaric campaign against the province of Idlib, where more than 600 civilians have been killed, and more than 600,000 have been displaced.
Source: Middle East Monitor.