Pope Leo XIV calls for prayers for end to war in Ukraine following attack on Lavra

Pope Leo XIV called for prayers for an end to the war in Ukraine amid the latest attacks by the aggressor state, russia, on Ukraine. He also mentioned the damage to churches and cultural heritage sites destroyed by fire.

He wrote about this on social media on June 17.

“There has been distressing news about the war in Ukraine, which keeps expanding. There are many innocent victims, rescue workers killed, and churches and cultural heritage sites devastated by flames,” the post reads.

The Pope expressed solidarity with all those mourning their loved ones, with the wounded, and with those who “continue to serve life with courage amid violence.”

“Let us pray together that this war may end. Let us ask the Lord to open paths of dialogue, extinguish hatred, and make a just and lasting peace possible,” he added.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, on June 17, footage emerged showing the first few seconds following the russian attack on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra on the night of June 15. In particular, it showed a drone striking the Cathedral of the Dormition.

As a reminder, as a result of a massive russian attack on Kyiv on the night of June 15, the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra complex was directly hit, and the roof of the Cathedral of the Dormition caught fire.

Emergency repair works took place at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in Kyiv following the russian attack on June 15. Rescue workers from several regions of Ukraine are involved in the efforts.

During a meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy showed US President Donald Trump photos of the damage caused by the russian attack on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. According to media sources, Trump expressed his disapproval of the russian strike.