Pope prays for all mistreated youths after Guatemala blaze

A faithful prays as Pope Francis delivers the Angelus prayer from his studio overlooking St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) (The Associated Press)

prev next

Pope Francis waves to faithful during the Angelus prayer he delivered from his studio overlooking St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) (The Associated Press)

A faithful closes her eyes as she listens to Pope Francis during the Angelus prayer he delivered from his studio overlooking St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) (The Associated Press)

Pope Francis has prayed for the 39 girls killed and others injured in the blaze that began in a Guatemalan youth shelter when mattresses were set alight in a protest by those living there.

Greeting the faithful in St. Peter's Square on Sunday, Francis also prayed that God console the victims' families.

He added that he was praying and asked others to do likewise "for all the girls and boys who are victims of violence, maltreatment, exploitation and war" in the world.

Francis said: "This is a plague, a hidden cry that must be listened to by all of us. We can't continue to pretend not to see and not to hear it."

The inferno on Wednesday has drawn attention to alleged failings in Guatemala's child protective services.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/pope-prays-for-all-mistreated-youths-after-guatemala-blaze