Pope expresses 'great pain' over quake

(ANSA) - Vatican City, August 24 - Pope Francis expressed "great pain" after a devastating earthquake left scores dead and injured in a mountainous region of central Italy. "I cannot but express my great pain and say I am with the people present in all the places stricken by the seism, to all those who have lost loved ones and those who still feel shaken by fear," he said, adding he was "greatly affected" after hearing the mountain village of Amatrice was razed to the ground and that children are among the casualties. Francis spoke in St. Peter's Square, where 11,000 faithful had gathered for a customary general hearing on Wednesday. Among them was a group of 45 Iraqi pilgrims.