'The number of women who are beaten and abused in their homes, even by their husbands, is very, very high,' the Pope said.

Pope Francis, who is in Iraq for a historic meeting with the country’s top Shi'ite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, visited the birthplace of the Prophet Abraham on Saturday.

A spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is a devout Catholic, described the pope's remarks as "a very positive move."

The pope wrote that the belief of early Christians, "that if one person lacks what is necessary to live with dignity, it is because another person is detaining it," was still valid.

Sweeping changes were announced to the way the Roman Catholic Church deals with cases of sexual abuse of minors.

The Italian film and opera director died at his home in Rome on Saturday.

Pope Francis also acknowledged that the Church has to do more to end the abuse, saying it was willing to do so.

"It is better that they leave the priesthood or the consecrated life rather than live a double life," he said.

Bertolucci, 77, died at his home in Rome after a long illness, his publicist said. He had been in bad health for years and confined to a wheelchair since the early 2000s following a back operation.

Pope Francis believes that the separation of children from their parents is "contrary to our Catholic values" and "immoral".

The Pope said that journalists and social media users should shun and unmask manipulative "snake tactics" that foment division to serve political and economic interests.

The Pope's comments expressing his certainty in the innocence of Chilean Bishop Juan Barros, who has been accused of protecting a notorious paedophile, were at the receiving end of criticism in Chile and his native Argentina.

Alleging false charges were levelled at him, Milone said he was coerced into stepping down. The Vatican dismissed his claims as "false and unjustified".  

The strife-ridden nation signed the accord with 13 of the 14 armed groups in the country in a deal brokered by the Roman Catholic Sant'Egidio peace group.

A shift to the German style electoral system has been agreed upon by the country's largest parties, with elections likely to be held later this year.

The move means that the Vatican will have much more diplomatic influence in Myanmar, which is facing international scrutiny over atrocities against the Rohingya Muslim minority.

The American Jewish Committee (AJC) later urged the pope "to reconsider his regrettable choice of words" for using the term 'concentration camp'.