Pope vows 'all-out battle' against sex abuse in church

Pope Francis. Fourteen Roman Catholic priests involved in a sex abuse scandal in Chile have been stripped of their duties. FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

Pope Francis on Sunday vowed to tackle every single case of sexual abuse by priests in the Roman Catholic Church, comparing paedophilia to "human sacrifice" in a speech that left victims cold.

His public address to top bishops at the end of a landmark summit in the Vatican promised an "all-out battle" against abusive priests, but blamed the devil and insisted the Church was not the only place children were assaulted.