"We are going towards Christmas: will we be able, with God's help, to take concrete steps of peace?" Pope Francis asked this to the faithful who came to St. Peter's Square yesterday for the Angelus prayer. "It is not easy, we know," he replies, because "certain conflicts have deep historical roots”. Hope, however, comes from the witness of those who, in the many conflicts that are bloodstaining the world, "have worked with wisdom and patience for peaceful coexistence”. On World Human Rights Day yesterday, Francis did not forget the tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel: "Civilians, hospitals, places of worship should be protected, hostages freed and humanitarian aid guaranteed". The Pope's thoughts then went to the prisoner exchange that took place between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which led to the release of a significant number of prisoners - sources in Baku speak of 32 Armenian soldiers in exchange for 2 Azeris - as part of the crisis involving Nagorno-Karabakh.
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