We must never forget that war invariably leads to defeat, the Holy Father noted

At his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis once again called for negotiated peace and condemned the bloody conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, Reuters reported. The agency notes that the pope has again cut short his public appearances due to health problems.

“We must never forget that war invariably leads to defeat, we cannot continue to live in war, we must make every effort to mediate, to negotiate an end to war, let us pray for this,” the Holy Father said in a brief his statement at the end of the audience, in which he mentioned “martyred” Ukraine and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Eighty-seven-year-old Francis, who has mobility problems and has been suffering from colds and bouts of bronchitis in recent weeks, again did not read most of the speech prepared for the audience, Reuters noted. He delegated this task to an assistant and told the faithful that he was still forced to limit his public speaking.

Earlier this month, Francis sparked controversy after he said in an interview with Swiss public television that Ukraine should “have the courage to wave a white flag” and start negotiations with Russia.

His deputy, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, later specified that Russia must first stop its aggression, Reuters recalls.

Illustrative photo: Cain and Abel