LONDON 

Pope Leo XIV has appealed once again for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, urging world leaders to embrace dialogue and peace as Russia continues to intensify its attacks on Ukrainian cities, Vatican News reported on Sunday.

Speaking at the Sunday Angelus in Rome, the pope said: “The voice of weapons must fall silent, and the voice of fraternity and justice must prevail.”

He renewed his closeness to the Ukrainian people, lamenting the “continual destruction and death” caused by the war, and encouraged people not to succumb to indifference. Instead, he urged prayers and “concrete actions of charity,” reiterating his call for a ceasefire.

“It is time for those in power to abandon the logic of weapons and to take up the path of negotiation and peace, with the support of the international community,” he said.

Pope Leo also prayed for the victims of a shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

“We include in our prayers the countless children killed and injured every day around the world,” he said. “Let us plead with God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world.”

The pope also recalled the deaths of at least 69 people after a boat carrying irregular migrants sank off the coast of Mauritania.

“This deadly tragedy is repeated every day around the world,” he said. “Let us pray that the Lord may teach us, as individuals and as a society, to fully put into practice His word: ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me.’”