Pope Francis. Photo: Casa Rosada/Wikimedia Commons

JNS.org – During at mass at St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, Pope Francis I said he was disturbed by the “terrible images these days” coming out of Syria and he called on the international community to find a solution to a war of “death and destruction,”Vatican Radio reported.

“With great suffering and concern I continue to follow the situation in Syria. The increase in violence in a war between brothers, with the proliferation of massacres and atrocities, that we all have been able to see in the terrible images of these days, leads me once again raise my voice that the clatter of arms may cease,” Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis also called on the international community to do more.

“I appeal to the international community to be more sensitive to this tragic situation and make every effort to help the beloved Syrian nation find a solution to a war that sows destruction and death,” he said.

Meanwhile, Archbishop Mario Zenari, who is the Vatican’s envoy to Syria, said on Monday that Syria was starting its “descent into hell,” and that he prayed that the international community do everything possible to prevent the massacres in Syria.

The appeal by Pope Francis comes as the international community is debating a response to evidence that the Syrian government used chemical weapons against its people. U.S. President Barack Obama has said that the use of chemical weapons would cross a “red line” that could trigger U.S. military action.