ROME -- Pope Francis made a new heartfelt plea Wednesday morning calling to end the bombing in Syria, with particular reference to the civilian victims of warfare, especially children.

 “I want to highlight and reiterate my affinity with all the victims of the inhumane conflict in Syria. It is with a sense of urgency that I renew my plea, directed at those responsible, with all my force, so that we can see an immediate ceasefire which would be imposed and respected at least for the time needed for civilians to be evacuated, especially children, who are still stuck in the middle of the bloody conflict”, the pontiff said, receiving applause from the crowd.

 The National Observatory for Human Rights in Syria (Ondus), reports that intense Russian and Syrian-government air-raids are currently in course over the eastern quarters of Aleppo, controlled by rebels. According to Ondus, more than 20 air attacks have been carried out on Wednesday morning over civilian inhabited zones, in particular the areas of Firdaws, Bustan and Qasr. Ondus confirms that in Aleppo around 275, 000 civilians still remain trapped amongst the conflict.

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