Pope holds minute of silence for Egypt mosque attack victims

VATICAN CITY – The pope has led a minute of silence in St. Peter’s Square for the victims of the deadly attack on a mosque in Egypt.

Francis said following the traditional Angelus greeting on Sunday that the victims “were praying in that moment. We also pray in silence for them.”

The pope said the attack on Friday “brought great pain,” adding that he continued to pray for the dead and the wounded “and for the whole of that community, that has been so hard hit.”

The pope previously expressed in a telegram his “strong condemnation” of the attack, which killed 305 people in the deadliest assault by Islamic extremists in modern Egyptian history.

The pontiff also asked for prayers for his six-day trip Myanmar and Bangladesh, for which he departs later Sunday.