Pope Leo XIV Urges Putin Truce for Starving Ukrainians

Pope Leo XIV just finished a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin asking for an immediate truce to save lives in Ukraine. The Vatican confirmed this urgent discussion took place today while the Pontiff expressed deep concern over the starvation crisis gripping Oleshky. Thousands of Ukrainians are dying there as soldiers litter every road with mines, cutting off all escape routes from the southern city. Leo pleaded directly with Moscow to allow first aid and food trucks into the town right away. He also demanded permission for a voluntary evacuation of the 2,000 people still trapped inside that hell on earth.

This diplomatic move happened on the same day the world saw Pope Leo XIV for the very first time since his lung surgery. The 71-year-old leader underwent ninety minutes of operation work Tuesday morning after doctors found a lesion on his chest and removed part of his right lung to treat cancer. New images released by the Vatican show him looking relaxed and in good form standing before a makeshift altar on the tenth floor of the Rome hospital. He wore a green vestment and stood beside his private secretary, Peruvian priest Edgard Rimaycuna, who is also known as Monsignor Edgard Iván Rimaycuna Inga.

The press office stated that Leo celebrated Mass with medical staff, nurses, orderlies, and even some police officers who were off duty at the time. He thanked everyone for their closeness to people in fragility and specifically for the care given to him during these dark days. His remarks arrive as constant drone attacks and artillery shelling make it impossible to deliver essential medicine or food supplies into Oleshky. Around 50 children remain among the population facing mortal danger while desperate residents try to flee via a route locals call the Death Road toward Skadovsk. That sixty-two mile journey is life-threatening because mines litter the path and Russian drones target anything that moves.

Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's human rights ombudsman, said on September 16 that these people need saving from this hell before it is too late. Those who die are no longer buried because even the mortuary has been bombed by shelling. Constant drone attacks and artillery fire have made delivery of supplies impossible, leaving thousands to starve in frontline Oleshky which Vladimir Putin's forces have effectively cut off. The pope is expected to lead the traditional Angelus prayer this Sunday though a Vatican source refused to say if he would speak from the hospital or back at the Vatican. This tradition usually involves reciting prayers every Sunday from the window overlooking St Peter's Square for crowds gathered below.

Leo was admitted Tuesday to Rome's Gemelli hospital north of the Vatican where surgeons removed that cancerous tumor from his right lung. Doctors said his recovery is progressing normally and ongoing tests will determine the future course of treatment. On Thursday, a chest X-ray indicated good recovery of the operated lung while Friday tests showed steady improvement in his general condition. He is now carrying out normal daily activities completely independently according to medical reports yet results on whether cancer has spread are still pending. Morale remains high which is obvious given how well he appears outside the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic.

A Vatican source says the recovery is moving along because Pope Leo can now celebrate Mass. The press office has not yet announced when he might leave the hospital. Doctors originally stated his healing would take about a week, and officials are repeating that timeline. If Leo steps up to the window of Gemelli hospital to recite the Angelus, history will not be made. That is something popes have done before. On February 6, 2005, John Paul II, then 84 years old, appeared at a window while he recovered from flu-related respiratory issues. An aide stood beside him and read the prayer aloud to the crowd outside. Pope Francis also gave the Angelus from a hospital window back on July 11, 2021. He was 84 then as well after surgery on his colon. He told the gathered people, 'I am glad to be able to keep the Sunday Angelus appointment, even here.'

Also this Friday, the Vatican released letters and drawings sent by children at the hospital. One picture shows a tree labeled 'For Pope Leo,' complete with grass, sun, and clouds. An 18-year-old girl wrote a letter saying, 'Better days will come for the both of us.' A seven-year-old boy named Angelo also shared his story. He spent 36 days on the tenth floor of Gemelli hospital following head surgery. In his note, he said, 'My mother and I pray for you every night,' and added, 'I hope you get well soon.' These messages highlight a deep connection between the sick leader and ordinary citizens waiting for news.