Pope Francis sent a telegram on Friday expressing his condolences for the loss of EgyptAir Flight MS-804, which crashed into the Mediterranean Sea last week en route from Paris to Cairo, claiming the lives of 66 people. In the telegram, addressed to the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and signed on behalf of the Pontiff by Vatican secretary of state Cardinal Pietro Parolin, an assurance of Pope Francis's "prayers and solidarity" was offered. "(Pope Francis) commends the souls of the deceased of various nationalities to the mercy of the Almighty," the telegram said. "Upon the relatives of the passengers and all those involved in the search and rescue efforts, His Holiness invokes the divine blessings of strength and peace."