Vatican envoy to Damascus criticises media's neglect of the suffering of all Syrians

'Syria has witnessed three years full of destruction, with the number killed reaching over 200,000 and refugees who have reached over three million'

The Vatican's envoy to Syria, Mario Zenari, has criticised some media outlets for focusing only on the events occurring in the Kurdish city of Ayn Al-Arab, also known as Kobani, without mentioning the suffering of Syrians in other cities, Vatican Radio reported on Thursday.

In an interview with the official broadcasting service of the Vatican, Zenari pointed out that: "The Islamic State (ISIS) was merely the straw that broke the camel's back in Syria, as it caused a state of extreme panic and suffering."

"However, Syria has witnessed three years full of destruction, with the number killed reaching over 200,000 and refugees who have reached over three million," he explained, adding that, "There are also about seven million Syrians displaced inside the country."

"Therefore, we must not, as I have seen some media outlets do, only talk about Kobani," he warned. "There are many suffering in Aleppo, Idlib, the rural areas of Damascus and southern Syria."

The Vatican diplomat also expressed his belief that "the time has come for the international community, as well as the countries in the region, to make serious efforts and to review their positions, because this conflict must be resolved and we must eliminate the disaster that is ISIS."