Pope acknowledges ‘failings’ during genocide

Pope Francis has asked for ‘God's forgiveness’ for the ‘sins and failings’ of the Roman Catholic Church during the Rwandan genocide. Numerous Catholic priests are believed to have been complicit in the killings of about 800 000 people by Hutu extremists in 1994. BBC News reports that several massacres were carried out in churches where people sought sanctuary. The Vatican has, until now, maintained that the Church as an institution bore no responsibility. However, notes the report, Pope Francis has conveyed his ‘profound sadness for the sins and failings of the Church and its members’ who succumbed to hatred and violence’.