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The head of the Catholic Church has said contraception may be morally permissible in areas affected by the Zika virus, which is suspected of causing birth defects.
Pope Francis pointed to a statement from an earlier pontiff, Pope Paul VI, that permitted nuns to use contraception in areas where they feared being raped.
"Avoiding pregnancy isn't an absolute evil," Pope Francis said during an overnight flight to Rome, "and in certain cases such as this one, as in that one I mentioned of Blessed Paul VI, it was clear."
Abortion, the pope added, is never permissible.
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The Zika virus has been linked to microcephaly, a birth defect that results in newborns having abnormally small heads. That link has not yet been proven, however.
The pope's comments came as he was returning home from his trip to Mexico. In the same press conference, he was asked why he didn’t meet with the families of the 43 disappeared students and he said that it was because there were “internal fights” among them.
WATCH: Mexico: Pope Francis Visits Prison in Ciudad Juarez
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