Pope Leo XIV called for an immediate cease-fire in Ukraine and Gaza during his first Sunday blessing as pontiff.
“I too address the world’s great powers by repeating the ever-present call ‘never again war,’” Leo said from the loggia at the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Basilica to an estimated 100,000 people below.
The newly-elected pontiff quoted his predecessor Pope Francis in denouncing the conflicts around the globe, calling them a “third World War in pieces.”
Pope Leo XIV called for the end of war in St. Peter’s Square on May 11, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican. Getty ImagesLeo began with words for Ukraine, where Russia’s invasion rages on as President Vladimir Putin resists calls from world leaders to accept a US-backed 30-day cease-fire proposal.
I carry in my heart the sufferings of the beloved Ukrainian people,” the pope said. “Let everything possible be done to achieve genuine, just and lasting peace as soon as possible.”
He also called for an end to the war in Gaza, for the 59 hostages held by Hamas to be released, and for humanitarian aid to be delivered to the Palestinian enclave.
Leo was picking up the papal tradition of offering a Sunday blessing at noon, but with several twists. Whereas his predecessors delivered the greeting from the studio window of the Apostolic Palace, off to the side of the piazza, Leo went to the very center of the square and the heart of the church.
Firefighters work at the site an apartment building hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine May 7, 2025. REUTERS
Demonstrators stand in smoke during a protest demanding a cease-fire deal and the immediate release of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, in Tel Aviv, Israel on, Saturday, May 10, 2025. APHe also offered a novelty by singing the Regina Caeli prayer, a Latin prayer said during the Easter season that past popes would usually just recite.
“I am deeply hurt by what is happening in the Gaza Strip,” he said of the 19-month conflict.
“May a ceasefire immediately come into effect. May humanitarian aid be allowed into the civilian population and may all hostages be freed,” Leo added.
Along with calling for peace in Ukraine and Gaza, the pope also prayed for the cease-fire in India and Pakistan to hold following days of heated tit-for-tat attacks between the two nuclear-powered neighbors.
The remarks were Leo’s first since he first appeared before the world on Thursday as the new pope, the first from the US.
Leo opted to hold the weekly Sunday noon blessing at the very center of the church rather than from the window of the Apostolic Palace — deviating from the practice of his predacessors.
The pontiff also took time from his blessing to celebrate Mother’s Day in nation’s around the world, wishing all mothers, “including those in heaven” a happy holiday.
With Post wires
