Ukraine Civilians Suffer More Deaths Despite Pope’s Peace Appeals (Worthy News Radio)
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
VATICAN CITY/KYIV/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Pope Francis’s appealed to pray for peace and urged leaders to negotiate on the future of Ukraine as the war-torn nation was reeling Sunday from massive Russian strikes that, besides soldiers, also killed more than a dozen civilians over the weekend. Russia, in turn, accused Ukraine of hitting Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. The reported attacks came amid calls by Kyiv for better air defenses and calls for a world summit on peace.
On Sunday authorities said at least three civilians were killed in a Russian attack on the frontline village of Guliaipole in Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia region.
The two men and a woman were the latest known civilian victims in the more than two-year-long war.
Officials suggested that the death toll could have been higher if Ukraine’s forces had not destroyed 17 attack drones launched by Russia overnight.
Earlier on Saturday, two Russian missile and drone strikes killed at least eight people and wounded some 10 more people in the northeastern Kharkiv area, officials said.
Separately, in the eastern region of Donetsk, artillery shelling killed four people in the village of Kurakhivka, including a 38-year-old woman and her 16-year-old daughter, according to local authorities.
Elsewhere, a 25-year-old man in the village of Krasnohorivka was reportedly killed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy suggested the death toll could rise, saying Ukraine is running out of air defense missiles if Russia keeps up its intense long-range bombing campaign.
NATO PLEDGE
The secretary general of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, pledged that the military alliance celebrating its 75th anniversary won’t abandon Ukraine.
Talks have been underway on his proposal to do so via a 100 billion-euro ($107 billion) five-year fund. “We must ensure reliable and predictable security assistance to Ukraine for the long haul,” he said. “We are transforming NATO’s comprehensive assistance package into a multi-year program of assistance,” Stoltenberg added.
However, Ukrainian troops on the battlefield also face other challenges. They say Russia uses drones dropping teargas and other chemicals, although they have been banned during war under the Chemical Weapons Convention.
In turn, Moscow has accused Kyiv of attacking the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Europe’s largest, on Sunday.
The strike allegedly damaged a truck parked near the station’s canteen, and there were no reports of radiation leaks or casualties.
Russia is also investigating a dam burst in the Orenburg region that forced thousands, including at least 900 children, to evacuate. However, there were no indications that Ukraine was responsible.
CHINA INVOLVED
Yet there are concerns the war will pull in more nations, with Russia’s and China’s foreign ministers meeting in the coming days to discuss the war in Ukraine, among other issues.
The United States had warned allies that China had provided crucial
intelligence to Moscow in its war against Ukraine, including through satellite imagery for military purposes, as well as microelectronics and machine tools for tanks.
As battles raged, Ukrainian President Zelensky said he hoped that he and Swiss President Viola Amherd would set a date within days for what he called “a world peace summit” in Switzerland.
At least 80 to 100 nations are expected to attend the meeting.
Yet, Moscow said the peace summit would have been pointless without Russian participation.
Previously, Kyiv made clear that Russia won’t be invited to the gathering.
If you are interested in articles produced by Worthy News, please check out our FREE sydication service available to churches or online Christian ministries. To find out more, visit Worthy Plugins.