Pope asks for child abuse forgiveness

    
Pope Francis has asked for forgiveness for damage to children caused by sexual abusers among the clergy.

In quotes carried by Vatican Radio, he described the abuse as a “moral damage carried out by men of the Church”, and said “sanctions” would be imposed.

It is being described as his strongest statement on the issue so far.

Last month, Pope Francis strongly defended the Roman Catholic Church’s record on tackling sexual abuse by priests, following UN criticism.