St Francis Church, Tripoli

Things have gone very quiet in Tripoli. Bishop Giovanni Innocenzo Martinelli, Apostolic Vicar of Tripoli, told Fides this morning: “There is complete calm in Tripoli. The city appears tranquil and silent. There are no cars on the streets. I don't know what to think.”

Bishop Martinelli said: “I want to think that underlying these hours of silence a peaceful outcome to the crisis is being negotiated. I trust that something will give way to this. I believe that moral and other pressures at certain levels may shift the situation.”

He pointed to the appeal launched by Pope Benedict XVI at the Angelus on Sunday 6 March for the people being attacked in Libya. Bishop Martinelli concluded: “the appeal for prayer for Libya by Pope Benedict XVI gave us great comfort. It was an important message for us to understand that we are not on our own.”

Source: Fides