The pontiff addresses more than 65,000 youths in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Head of the Catholic Church says foreign players should stop plundering Africa’s resources.
The rebels seize the strategic town after days of fierce fighting, drawing condemnation from the UN.
An estimated one million Congolese poured into Kinshasa’s N’Dolo Airport for a mass service with Pope Francis.
The 86-year-old Francis says a ‘forgotten genocide’ is under way in DRC as he begins his trip to two African nations.
Pope Francis’ trip to the DRC is the first papal visit since John Paul II travelled there in 1985.
The head of the Catholic Church aims to help restore peace in two countries that have seen years of violence.
Pope’s long-awaited visit to DRC and South Sudan where two of the world’s most neglected crises are ongoing.
The ADF, a central African affiliate of ISIL, is one of the deadliest armed groups in eastern DRC.
The M23 rebels have seized areas of eastern DRC’s North Kivu province in a rapid onslaught since May.
There are 2.2 million internally displaced people in South Sudan as a civil war that began in 2013 continues to simmer.
Kinshasa denies Kigali’s claim calling the incident a ‘deliberate act of aggression that amounts to an act of war’.
The influential church has a long history of promoting democracy and monitoring elections in the country.
More than 200 hectares (500 acres) of forest have been razed to stumps in Virunga National Park in less than two months.
