Pope Francis condemned the attack as “abominable” and called on everyone to stop the spread of hate.

“The Holy Father expresses his firmest condemnation of the horrible attack,” said chief Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi.

Homicidal violence is never justified

Francis “calls on everyone to oppose every method of spreading hate” because it “radically undermines the fundamental good of peaceful coexistence of people despite national, religious and cultural differences”.

“Whatever its motivation might be, homicidal violence is abominable [and] is never justified,” the spokesman said, reflecting the sentiments of the Pope.

The leader of the 1.2 billion-member Roman Catholic Church was “participating in the prayers and sufferings of the injured and the families of the dead”, the spokesman said.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Vatican’s deputy spokesman, Father Ciro Benedettini, called the Paris attack “abominable because it is both an attack against people as well as against freedom of the press”.