Pope Francis on Sunday rejected Russia’s assertion that it is carrying out a “a special military operation” in Ukraine, saying the country was being battered by a war.
“In Ukraine rivers of blood and tears are flowing. This is not only a military operation but a war which is leading to death, destruction and misery,” the pope said in his weekly address to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square in Rome
Last Wednesday, Pope Francis asked people around the world to remember Ukrainians in underground shelters seeking protection from bombardments and thanked Poland for taking in the bulk of refugees from the war.
Francis spoke at his weekly general audience on Ash Wednesday, which he has declared a day of prayer and fasting for peace in Ukraine.
After addressing Poles, the pope went off script to say that the Polish translator on the stage with him, Father Marek Viktor Gongalo, is Ukrainian.
His parents are now in underground shelters to protect themselves from the bombs in a place near Kyiv,” the pope said.
“By accompanying him, we accompany all the people who are suffering from the bombings, including his elderly parents and so many other elderly who are in underground shelters defending themselves. Let us remember these people in our hearts.”
Kyiv residents have been sheltering in metro stations and other underground sites at night, there are long lines for fuel, and some products are running out in shops.
