VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV on Thursday (Dec 25) urged Russia and Ukraine to find the “courage” to hold direct talks and spoke of the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza in his first Christmas message.
The US pope, who was elected by fellow cardinals in May after the death of his predecessor Pope Francis, also condemned the “senselessness” of war and the “rubble and open wounds” it leaves behind.
Speaking to a crowd of some 26,000 people in St Peter’s Square, the pope called for “solidarity with and acceptance of those in need” in Europe – a possible reference to growing anti-immigration sentiment on the continent.
“Let us pray in a particular way for the tormented people of Ukraine,” he said.
“May the parties involved, with the support and commitment of the international community, find the courage to engage in sincere, direct and respectful dialogue,” he added.
Russian and Ukrainian officials have spoken separately in recent weeks to US negotiators about proposals to end the war started by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Tens of thousands have been killed, eastern Ukraine decimated and millions forced to flee their homes.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week outlined key points of a plan to end the conflict after US talks.
But Russian President Vladimir Putin has so far shown no willingness to compromise, doubling down on his hardline demands.
“RETURN OF LIFE”
In his first Christmas homily as pontiff, Leo addressed the dismal conditions in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people are still living in temporary shelters in wintry conditions weeks after a fragile ceasefire took hold.
“How … can we not think of the tents in Gaza, exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold,” the pope said, adding that the territory’s inhabitants “have nothing left and have lost everything.”
The UN has said that an estimated 1.3 million people currently need shelter assistance in Gaza and has warned of the increasing risk of hypothermia as temperatures dip.
“The war, in all its forms, has been harsh on everyone living on this land,” Elias al-Jalda, a Palestinian Christian from Gaza, told AFP after attending a Christmas mass at Gaza’s only Roman Catholic Church late on Wednesday.
“We hope this year will mark the beginning of a new phase – one defined by a complete end to the war and the return of life to Gaza,” said Jalda, one of dozens attending the mass.