Pope Francis says he is close to all civilian victims of the missile attack, which has struck an urban area of Irbil, Iran.

Speaking at his weekly audience at the Vatican, the Pope said, “I ask all to avoid every step which might increase tension in the Middle East and in other areas of conflict.”

The Pope said “war doesn’t sow love, it sows hate.”

He urged the faithful to pray for the people of “Palestine, Israel, Ukraine, and many other places where there is war.”