Europe marks Christmas amid ramped-up security

VATICAN CITY — Tens of thousands of worshipers gathered at the Vatican on Sunday to hear Pope Francis address the world’s Christians, as Europe marked Christmas under ramped-up security after the Berlin attack. Pope Francis urged peace around the world in his traditional Christmas address on Sunday, calling for weapons in Syria to fall silent and offering comfort to victims of terrorism. In Europe, leaders are still reeling from this week’s attack in Berlin where a truck ploughed through a crowded Christmas market, killing 12 people in an assault claimed by Daesh (the so-called IS). Locals and tourists alike however are still visiting the German capital’s Breitscheidplatz market, with many stopping to light a candle or lay flowers for the victims. “It’s really nice there are so many people here and it’s still open,” said Marianne Weile, 56, from Copenhagen. “So even though you are really sad about what happened you can still keep Christmas. It’s not like this crazy guy ruined it for everybody.” In Milan, where suspected Berlin attacker Anis Amri was killed in a police shootout on Friday, there was a heavy police presence around the cathedral. The entrance has been protected by concrete barriers since the Berlin attack. In France, 91,000 members of the security forces have been deployed to guard public spaces including churches and markets over the weekend. Pope Francis in Christmas Eve mass urged a 10,000-strong crowd in St. Peter’s Square to feel compassion for children, notably victims of war, migration and homelessness. Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury who leads the world’s Anglicans, meanwhile said 2016 had left the world more divided and fearful. “The end of 2016 finds us all in a different kind of world; one less predictable and certain, which feels more awash with fear and division,” he said in a sermon on Sunday. Despite the security fears, many were braving winter temperatures to take part in traditional revelry. — AFP