Vatican City (AsiaNews) Pope John Paul II is praying for the victims of the earthquake that has hit various Asian countries and has called for the help of the international community.
"The Christmas holiday," the Pope told the faithful gathered in St Peter's Square, "has been saddened by news coming from South-East Asia that a strong earthquake has hit Indonesia with a ripple effect in other countries like Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and the Maldives".
"We are praying," the Pontiff added, "for the victims of this immense tragedy and express our solidarity to all those who are suffering, whilst calling on the international community to act swiftly to bring help to the populations involved."