Pope decries London bombings as 'barbaric acts against humanity'

Published: 2005-07-07

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI decried a string of bombings that struck central London as "barbaric acts against humanity" and said his prayers were with victims and their families. The pope said he was offering "fervent prayers" for all those affected by explosions that hit London's subway and bus system early July 7. In a telegram sent by the Vatican's secretary of state, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, to Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor of Westminster, England, Pope Benedict said his thoughts and prayers were with the victims, families of the injured and "all those who mourn." The pope invoked "the consolation that only God can give in such circumstances" to all the people of Great Britain. He asked the cardinal "to convey to the families of the injured his spiritual closeness at this time of grief."

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