ISTANBUL 

Pope Leo XIV called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and peace in Ukraine during Wednesday's Papal Audience.

Pope Leo "forcefully" appealed for a "ceasefire now" in Gaza and reiterated the need to "fully respect" humanitarian law, according to Vatican News.

“From the Gaza Strip, we hear rising ever more insistently to the heavens the cries of mothers and fathers who clutch the lifeless bodies of their children and who are continually forced to move about in search of a little food and water and safer shelter from bombardments," Pope said, as the Gaza death toll nears 54,084 on the 600th day of Israel’s ongoing genocidal war since October 2023.

Pope Leo also called for peace in Ukraine, underlining that his thoughts often turn to “the Ukrainian people affected by new serious attacks against civilians and infrastructure.”

He reaffirmed his appeal “to stop the war and to support every initiative for dialogue and peace.”