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on September 17, 2025
* Russian forces have likely seized the center of the fiercely contested city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine and are threatening a key supply route for Ukrainian forces to the west, British intelligence said.
<img src="https://burst.shopifycdn.com/photos/little-boy-in-playground-looking-to-the-right.jpg?width=746&format=pjpg&exif=0&iptc=0"; style="max-width:400px;float:left;padding:10px 10px 10px 0px;border:0px;" alt="" />In his message Francis also mentioned instability in Lebanon, expressed the hope that the "martyred Rohingya people" of Myanmar "may encounter justice", and called for more aid for the victims of earthquakes in February that killed nearly 56,000 people in Turkey and Syria.
A carpet of 38,000 flowers donated by the Netherlands bedecked the square for the most important and joyous date in the Church's liturgical calendar - commemorating the day Christians believe Jesus rose from the dead.
And a bizarre moment in the speech came when Putin suddenly disappeared from news feeds in mid-sentence - replaced by a band that was mid-way through singing, perhaps suggesting his address was not broadcast live.
On Sunday he asked God to "comfort the wounded and all those who have lost loved ones because of the war, and grant that prisoners may return safe and sound to their families. Open the hearts of the entire international community to strive to end this war and all conflict and bloodshed in our world."
Daniel Kebede (centre) has been outspoken on his political stances - including a statement after threats from Russian president Vladimir Putin against Ukraine where he criticised Nato involvement in the conflict
* Ukraine's First Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova is due to visit India on Monday and will seek humanitarian aid and equipment to repair energy infrastructure damaged during Russia's invasion, the Hindu newspaper reported on Saturday.
* Russia threatened to bypass a U.N.-brokered grain deal unless obstacles to its agricultural exports were removed, while talks in Turkey agreed removing barriers was needed to extend the agreement beyond next month.
Several Telegram channels critical of the Kremlin reported that students and employees of state institutions in a number of regions were ordered by their superiors to attend rallies and concerts marking the Crimea anniversary.
Between the Mass and his reading of the message, Francis, appearing in fine form, was driven in a popemobile around the square and down the main boulevard leading to the River Tiber so more people could see him.
There, from the same spot where he first appeared to the world as pope on the night of his election in 2013, he spoke of "the darkness and the gloom in which, all too often, our world finds itself enveloped", and prayed to God for peace.
VATICAN CITY, April 9 (Reuters) - Pope Francis appeared to ask Russians to seek the truth about their country's invasion of Ukraine in his Easter message to the world on Sunday and appealed for dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians following recent violence.
Putin, who called the rally to mark the anniversary of the last time he attacked Ukraine to annex the Crimea region, spoke of sharing a 'common destiny' with Crimeans, of 'de-Nazifying' the region in 2014, and of the 'bravery' of soldiers currently fighting in Ukraine.
Speaking in front of banners that read 'For a world without Nazism' and 'For Russia' - with the letter 'Z' in each picked out in bold - he said: 'Sevastopol [capital of Crimea] did the right thing when they put up a barrier to neo-Nazis and radicals, which is already happening on other territories.
The event was heavily anti-Western and filled with Soviet nostalgia, as Russian authorities ramped up patriotism in response to being hit by massive international sanctions for Putin's Ukraine campaign, which has stalled thanks to fierce resistance.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year, Francis has at least twice a week referred to Ukraine and its people as being "martyred" and has used words such as aggression and atrocities to describe Russia's actions.
Tens of thousands of flag-waving Russians packed out Moscow's Luzhniki World Cup stadium on Friday as the despot attempted to drum up support for his stalled invasion of Ukraine, peddled debunked claims about why the war started and shilled a false narrative of Russia's battlefield 'success'.
As he has done every Easter, Francis called for peace in the Middle East, his appeal made more urgent by recent violence in Jerusalem and private math tutors near me cross-border exchanges of fire involving Israel, Lebanon and Syria.
They were surrounded and shelled by guns, the Ukrainians sent airstrikes against them. This is called genocide,' he said, repeating his widely-debunked justification for attacking. 'It is to save people from this suffering and genocide that we launched our military operation.'
'The best confirmation of this is how our guys are fighting during this operation, shoulder to shoulder, helping each other. When it is necessary, they cover each-other as if it was their own brother from bullets.
Vladimir Putin gave a a tub-thumping address yesterday to tens of thousands of Russians gathered at Moscow's world cup stadium, celebrating his invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and drumming up support for his new war