Pope Francis has asked for forgiveness for the damage done by Roman Catholic priests who abused children.
In a statement from The Vatican, the Pope said "I feel compelled to personally take on all the evil which some priests, quite a few in number, obviously not compared to the number of all the priests, to personally ask for forgiveness for the damage they have done for having sexually abused children".
He added that the Church is aware of the damage it has caused saying "it is personal, moral damage carried out by men of the Church, and we will not take one step backward with regards to how we will deal with this problem, and the sanctions that must be imposed".
Pope Francis said that "we have to be even stronger. Because you cannot interfere with children".
The Vatican says the Church has begun enforcing prevention and detection measures to eradicate abuse, however the success of these measures is said to vary widely between countries.
Thousands of abuse claims, dating back decades, have come to light in recent years.
The Church's handling of the allegations has been a subject of controversy with frequent reports of cases being covered up.
Pope Francis has also faced personal criticism for not taking a tough enough stand on the issue.
Last month, the Pontiff defended the record of the Catholic Church on tackling the sexual abuse of children by priests, saying "no-one else has done more" to root out paedophilia.
But in February, the United Nations denounced the Vatican for allowing child abuse to be covered up. The UN accused the church of preserving its own reputation and the reputation of abusers over the protection of child victims.
It raised concerns that sexual abusers were moved from parish to parish or across borders and that there was a "code of silence" among the clergy.
The UN committee urged the Holy See to share information on all cases of abuse, amid reports the Vatican had declined to provide any data relating to the scandal.
The Pope's predecessor Benedict XVI also issued an apology for the abuses.
