Pope calls for peace in Tibet

Pope Benedict has called for an end to injustice, hatred and violence around the world, including in Tibet, Iraq and Darfur in his Easter message.

The pope, who turns 81 next month, celebrated an Easter Mass for tens of thousands of people in driving rain in St Peter's Square as Christians around the world commemorated Christ's resurrection.

In his twice-yearly "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message delivered after the Mass, the pope decried "the many wounds that continue to disfigure humanity in our own day".

"These are the scourges of humanity, open and festering in every corner of the planet, although they are often ignored and sometimes deliberately concealed; wounds that torture the souls and bodies of countless of our brothers and sisters," he said.

He called for "an active commitment to justice in areas bloodied by conflict and wherever the dignity of the human person continues to be scorned and trampled" before wishing the world a happy Easter in 63 languages.

"It is hoped that these are precisely the places where gestures of moderation and forgiveness will increase," he said, specifically mentioning Darfur, Somalia, the Holy Land, Iraq, Lebanon and Tibet.

It was his second appeal in less than a week for calm in Tibet. In both cases he did not mention China, with which the Vatican has tense relations.

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