Pope Francis expressed solidarity Sunday with the victims of the novel coronavirus in his first livestreamed prayer and message from the Vatican.
"I am close through prayer with the people who suffer from the current coronavirus epidemic," the 83-year-old pope said in a message recorded at the Vatican library and aired live on a screen on Saint Peter's Square before a small crowd.
"I join my brother bishops in encouraging the faithful to live this difficult moment with the strength of faith, the certainty of hope and the fervour of charity."