Pope appeals to U.S. and Iran to pursue dialogue, self-restraint

By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Thursday urged the United States and Iran to avoid escalation and pursue "dialogue and self-restraint" to avert a wider conflict in the Middle East. The pope made his appeal, his first direct comment on the current crisis, in a yearly speech that has come to be known as his "State of the World" address to ambassadors accredited to the Vatican. Speaking for nearly 50 minutes in the Vatican's frescoed Sala Regia, the 83-year-old...