During his weekly general audience at the Vatican on Wednesday, a solemn Pope Francis decried the massacre in Bucha and kissed a battered Ukrainian flag from the ravaged hamlet near Ukraine's capital.
The pope also raised a soiled Ukrainian flag and asked a group of Ukrainian refugee youngsters and two mothers to join him on the stage. He kissed the flag as he folded it.
Pope Francis Condemns "Massacre in Bucha"
Women and children account for around 90 percent of the more than 4.2 million Ukrainian refugees who have fled their nation since Russia invaded on February 24. Pope Francis shared Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's criticism of the United Nations for failing to stop Russia's barbaric assault on his nation, per CBS News.
Countries attempted to lay the foundations for a 'new era of peace after World War II, the pontiff said on Wednesday, "but unfortunately, the old story of competition between the greater powers continued, and we are witnessing the impotence of international organizations in the current war in Ukraine."
Since the beginning of Russia's conflict in Ukraine, Pope Francis has appealed for an end to hostilities. The pope has acknowledged that he is planning a visit to Kyiv and that Vatican diplomats are working behind the scenes to bring the conflict to an end.
When several Western countries voiced their displeasure with Russia by tightening down on diplomats working in their country. Massive crimes were undeniably perpetrated in the Ukrainian city of Bucha, where mass graves were discovered near a church and corpses filled the streets.
US President Joe Biden called for a war crimes tribunal in connection with the murder of civilians in Bucha, pledging to seek further sanctions against Russia. Around 410 remains of dead Ukrainians were discovered in Bucha, Irpin, and other towns and villages over the first two days, according to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry on Sunday, April 3. According to the Defense Ministry, the precise number of Russian military deaths will be significantly higher.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba revealed photographs of the atrocities wrought by withdrawing Russian armed troops in Bucha city on Sunday, April 3, Republic World reported.
Bodies Pile up in Bucha
As police went about their business, dead citizens dressed in jeans and winter jackets and wearing sneakers could be seen through the open zippers of a handful of corpse bags. Over 60 dead have been found in Bucha in the last 24 hours. The remains of the family, twisted in death, were buried beside another unnamed Ukrainian in harrowing images. Officials in Makariv, a few kilometers northwest of Motyzhyn, reported that 20 dead had been discovered in and around the town.
Rescue workers in Borodyanka, where Ukrainian people are claimed to have fought off a Russian onslaught last month, said they were seeking bodies in the wreckage of demolished apartment complexes. Ukrainian officials warned residents to flee the east, where Kremlin forces are anticipated to advance, in light of the gory trail left behind by withdrawing Russian troops in the north.
Officials in Sloviansk, a city in the Donetsk oblast to the east, warned Wednesday that local bank branches, as well as postal and pension functions, were closing down. As Russian shelling hit high-rise buildings in the city of Severodonetsk, authorities in the eastern Luhansk oblast encouraged inhabitants to flee westward, as per New York Post.
Related Article : Pope Francis Considers Visiting Ukraine Amid Ongoing Russian Attacks
