Pope Leo XIV has appealed to the world’s major powers for “no more war” in his first Sunday message to crowds in St Peter’s Square since his election as pontiff.

The new Pope, elected on Thursday, called for an “authentic and lasting peace” in Ukraine and a ceasefire in Gaza and release of all Israeli hostages held by militant group Hamas.

Leo also welcomed the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan, negotiated overnight, and said he was praying to God to grant the world the “miracle of peace”.

“No more war!” the Pope said, repeating a frequent call of the late Pope Francis and noting the recent 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, in which some 60 million people were killed.

Leo said today’s world was living through “the dramatic scenario of a Third World War being fought piecemeal”, again repeating a phrase coined by Francis.

The new Pope said he carried in his heart the “suffering of the beloved people of Ukraine”.

Photo: AAP

Hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed direct talks with Ukraine aimed at ending the bloody three-year war, Leo appealed for negotiations to reach an “authentic, just and lasting peace”.

The Pope also said he was “profoundly saddened” by the war in Gaza, calling for an immediate ceasefire, humanitarian aid and release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas.

Leo said he was glad to hear of the recent India-Pakistan ceasefire and hoped negotiations would lead to a lasting accord between the nuclear-armed neighbours.

He added: “But there are so many other conflicts in the world.”

Leo’s first Sunday address to tens of thousands in the square coincided with a previously planned pilgrimage to Rome by marching bands from around the world.

Minutes before the Pope addressed the crowd, bands marched up the broad boulevard leading to the Vatican playing songs such as Y.M.C.A. by the Village People, the theme from the film Rocky, and music by John Philip Sousa, who composed the marching classic Stars and Stripes Forever.

The crowd, estimated at more than 100,000 by Italian authorities, was also entertained by bands from Italy, Mexico and other parts of Latin America who came to Rome for the ongoing Catholic Holy Year.

Zelenskiy flags Putin meet in Turkey

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says he will agree to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Turkey on Thursday, after US President Donald Trump told him immediately to accept Putin’s proposal of direct talks.

The Ukrainian leader had responded guardedly earlier on Sunday after the Russian president, in a night-time televised statement, proposed that Ukraine and Russia hold direct talks in Istanbul next Thursday.

It was not clear that Putin had proposed to attend in person, however.

“I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses,” Zelenskiy wrote on X.

Putin’s proposal came hours after major European powers demanded on Saturday in Kyiv that Putin agree to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire or face “massive” new sanctions, a position that Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg endorsed on Sunday.

Zelenskiy too had said Ukraine would be ready for talks with Russia, but only after Moscow agreed to the 30-day ceasefire.

But Trump, who has the power to continue or sever Washington’s crucial supply of arms to Ukraine, took a different line.

“President Putin of Russia doesn’t want to have a Cease Fire Agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the BLOODBATH. Ukraine should agree to this, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“At least they will be able to determine whether or not a deal is possible, and if it is not, European leaders, and the US, will know where everything stands, and can proceed accordingly!”

Hamas to release last living US hostage

Hamas says Edan Alexander, the last living American hostage in Gaza, will be released as part of efforts to establish a ceasefire, reopen crossings into the territory and resume the delivery of aid.

A source familiar with the matter said Alexander would likely be released on Tuesday.

The announcement on Sunday night comes shortly before US President Donald Trump visits the Middle East this week.

Trump is not planning to visit Israel.

Alexander is an Israeli-American soldier who grew up in the United States.

He was abducted from his base during the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that ignited the war in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israeli strikes killed 15 people in the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children, according to local health officials.

Two of the weekend strikes hit tents in the southern city of Khan Younis, each killing two children and their parents, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies.

Another seven people were killed in strikes elsewhere, including a man and his child in a Gaza City neighbourhood, according to hospitals and Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The Israeli military says it only targets militants and tries to avoid harming civilians.

It blames Hamas for civilian deaths in the 19-month-old war because the militants are embedded in densely populated areas.

There was no immediate Israeli comment on the latest strikes.

Israel has sealed Gaza off from all imports, including food, medicine and emergency shelter, for over 10 weeks in what it says is a pressure tactic aimed at forcing Hamas to release hostages.

Unease in Kashmir despite ceasefire

Joy about an India-Pakistan ceasefire has been short-lived in Kashmir.

Tens of thousands fled the Indian-controlled part of the disputed region last week amid heavy shelling and drone attacks by Pakistan.

Yet despite a ceasefire announced on Saturday, only a handful of families returned to their homes on Sunday.

“We will go back only after complete calm prevails,” said Basharat Ahmed, who lives in Poonch district.

“It doesn’t take much time for the two countries to start fighting on the border.”

The ceasefire was intended to halt the hostilities between the nuclear-armed neighbours and defuse the worst military confrontation between them for decades.

But just hours later, each side accused the other of violating the deal.

Indian officials said Pakistani shelling since Wednesday had killed at least 23 people and injured scores more.

The shelling also damaged or destroyed hundreds of residential buildings.

A man and his family in Indian-controlled Kashmir had taken shelter in a government-run college in the town of Baramulla.

When they left early on Sunday, soldiers at a checkpoint stopped them, without giving a reason, before they could reach home in the Uri area of Poonch.

“Our joy around the ceasefire just vanished,” said Bashir Ahmed.

He and his family had to return to the shelter at the college.

Indian and Pakistani soldiers each guard their side of the frontier.

There are watch towers every few hundred metres.

Some Indian and Pakistani troops are so close they can wave to one another.

A deadly attack on tourists in Kashmir last month plunged India-Pakistan relations to new lows.

India accused its neighbour of backing the massacre, in which 26 men, mostly Indian Hindus, were killed — a charge Pakistan denies.

Both countries subsequently expelled each other’s diplomats and nationals, and shut borders and airspace.

There were missile strikes, drone attacks, and heavy artillery fire in the days that followed.

On Sunday, India said its missile strikes into Pakistani territory last week killed at least 100 militants, including prominent leaders.

Across the border that divides Kashmir, people feared Indian attacks would flatten their villages.

They began returning after the deal was announced, only to see their houses and businesses wrecked, uninhabitable or unsafe, and their belongings ruined.

People are unsure if the ceasefire will hold and who will help them rebuild their lives.

—AAP