Ukrainian War, Pope Against Kiev: “No Christian Church Should Be Abolished”
It doesn’t stop war between Russia and Ukraine: two journalists were injured and a third is considered missing following an attack by Russian forces on a hotel in Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine, regional authorities said last night. “The three victims are journalists, citizens of Ukraine, the United States and the United Kingdom,” Donetsk region head Vadym Filashkin wrote on Telegram, adding that rescue operations were underway. The missing journalist is believed to be under the rubble of the building. The news agency reported earlier Reuters said it was a member of its team. “A member of the Reuters team covering the war in Ukraine is missing and two others have been hospitalized after an attack on a hotel in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk,” the agency wrote on its website, noting that its crew staying at the targeted Sapphire Hotel consisted of six people.
Filashkin said the attack occurred “in the middle of the night,” adding that “a hotel in the city was targeted: at the moment it is known that two people are injured and one is under the rubble.” “All three victims are journalistsUkrainian, US and British citizens. In addition to the hotel, a nearby high-rise building was also damaged,” he continued. “Authorities, police and rescuers are working at the scene. The rubble has been cleared and rescue operations are underway.” Kramatorsk is the last major city in Donbass still under Ukrainian control. It is located about 20 kilometers from the front line. The city had about 150,000 inhabitants before the Russian invasion in February 2022, but has since come under repeated attacks.
“I continue to follow with sorrow the fighting in Ukraine and in the Russian Federation,” Pope Francis said at the Angelus. “And thinking of the laws recently adopted in Ukraine – he continued – I am afraid for the freedom of those who pray, because those who truly pray always pray for everyone. Evil is not committed because one prays. If someone commits evil against his people he will be guilty for this, but he cannot have committed evil because he prayed.” “And so let those who want to pray in what they consider their Church pray – he added -. Please, no Christian Church shall be abolished directly or indirectly. Churches are not to be touched!”.
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