Pope Leo XIV appealed on August 9 for an end to the war that Russia has been waging against Ukraine for five years, according to Reuters.
Speaking to believers gathered for Sunday prayer, the pontiff said innocent people were being killed and injured in Ukraine and the Russian Federation. He added that tragic incidents were multiplying, leading to a constant rise in civilian casualties, particularly among children.
Pope Leo also called on all sides to respect international humanitarian law and stop attacking civilian targets on both sides.
UNICEF report on child casualties
Earlier this week, UNICEF issued a statement citing examples of child deaths in both Russia and Ukraine. The UN Children's Fund listed casualties in Russia's Belgorod Oblast and on a beach in Gelendzhik in Krasnodar Krai, alongside deaths in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk and Sumy Oblasts.
UNICEF urged all parties to fulfill their obligations under international humanitarian law, specifically regarding the protection of children and civilian infrastructure, adding that attacks killing and injuring children must stop. The agency did not state who started the war, which is now in its fifth year.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha criticized the statement, saying UNICEF created a false impression of equivalence between the aggressor and the victim.
UN mission records rise in casualties
Also this week, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine said a Russian strike using ballistic missiles and drones against Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast overnight into August 5 was part of a series of attacks causing rising civilian casualties.
According to mission statistics, 1,396 civilians were killed and 7,978 were injured in Ukraine during the first six months of 2026. Those figures mark a 37 percent increase compared to the same period in 2025 and a 114 percent increase compared to two years prior.
