VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone on Friday, calling for a ceasefire in a Russian-occupied city in southern Ukraine, as he recovers in hospital from a lung cancer operation.

The Vatican said that Pope Leo “expressed his deep concern about the grave humanitarian situation in the city of Oleshky, in the Kherson region, and called for a ceasefire to allow the delivery of food and medical assistance, and the voluntary and safe evacuation of the civilian population”.

The surprise notice from the Vatican on Friday evening suggested that the recovering pope is still hard at work, despite this week’s operation to remove a cancerous tumour from his right lung.

Residents of Oleshky, in southern Ukraine, are facing a worsening humanitarian crisis with shortages of food and medication as they are caught in the crossfire between Russian and Ukrainian troops.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, denounced a “desperate” situation in the city, calling on Russia to enable civilians to evacuate.

In a note, the Kremlin said the two had talked and “a detailed explanation was provided regarding the Kyiv regime’s responsibility for the difficult humanitarian situation” in Oleshky.

The Kremlin said Putin also wished the pope a speedy recovery and stressed the “importance of Russian-Vatican cooperation in promoting unifying spiritual and moral values”.

Makeshift altar

Earlier in the day, the pontiff celebrated mass on the top floor of Rome’s Gemelli hospital, as seen in the first images of him released by the Vatican since the procedure.

The images showed the 71-year-old Chicago-born pope in front of a makeshift altar in a room on the 10th floor, dressed in a green vestment.

He appeared relaxed and in good form in the two photos released, standing with his private secretary, Peruvian priest Edgard Rimaycuna, at his side.

Published in Dawn, October 17th, 2026