Pope Francis reached out in friendship to "so many Muslim brothers and sisters" during a Good Friday procession dedicated to the suffering of Christians in the Middle East.

Pope Francis reached out in friendship to "so many Muslim brothers and sisters" during a Good Friday procession dedicated to the suffering of Christians in the Middle East.

The new pontiff mostly called for an end to "violent fundamentalism," terrorism and the "wars and violence which in our days devastate various countries in the Middle East."

Francis, who became pope just over two weeks ago, chose, however, to stress Christians' positive relations with Muslims in the region in his brief comments at the end of the ceremony.

Standing on a platform overlooking the procession route, he recalled Benedict XVI's 2012 visit to Lebanon when "we saw the beauty and the strong bond of communion joining Christians together in that land and the friendship of our Muslim brothers and sisters and so many others."

"That occasion was a sign to the Middle East and to the whole world, a sign of hope," he said.

Thousands of people packed the Colosseum and surrounding areas for the nighttime procession, holding candles wrapped in paper globes.

Pope Francis is to celebrate his first Easter vigil on Saturday after praying for stronger Christian-Muslim dialogue at the Good Friday ceremony.

In Jerusalem, tens of thousands of pilgrims packed into the Old City for Good Friday -- and in the Philippines Catholic zealots had themselves nailed to crosses in a grisly Easter ritual that persists despite Church disapproval.