April 9, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

Pope Francis prayed for the people of Ukraine, Russia and other countries in conflict during his Easter blessing on Sunday from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.

“Help the beloved Ukrainian people on their journey towards peace, and shed the light of Easter upon the people of Russia,” Francis said during the traditional Urbi et Orbi Blessing (“To the City and the World").

Francis also referenced the recent clashes in Jerusalem and prayed for a “resumption of dialogue” between Israelis and Palestinians.

Nearly 100,000 people were present in St. Peter’s Square and surrounding streets for the Easter blessing, according to the Vatican Press Office.

Russian strikes killed at least two people in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia early Sunday, according to Ukraine's State Emergency Service.

A 50-year-old man and his 11-year-old daughter were killed after the strikes partially destroyed a residential building, officials said on Telegram. Rescuers pulled a 46-year-old woman out of the rubble, it added. 

According to Ukraine's National Police, two S-300 rockets hit a Zaporizhzhia residential area early on Sunday.

Zaporizhzhia, Orikhiv, Huliaipole and 15 other settlements were targeted by Russian shells, said Yurii Malashko, the head of Zaporizhzhia's regional military administration.

Malashko said dozens of properties have been destroyed or damaged over the last day, including apartments, houses and outbuildings.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky delivered an Easter message Sunday.

"I sincerely congratulate Ukrainians and all Christians who are celebrating Easter today. They are celebrating on the front line and across our various towns and villages," he wrote on Telegram.

In the speech, Zelensky praised Ukraine's multi-faith society. Zelensky shared Iftar with Ukrainian Muslim soldiers observing Ramadan on Friday, in what he said would become an annual "new tradition of respect."

"Soon, I will congratulate the Jews of Ukraine at the end of Passover. In just one week, I will greet all those who celebrate Easter on April 16 this year," Zelensky added, referring to the eastern Orthodox holiday.

"Although we may profess different religions, we share the same belief in freedom. We may have different traditions, but we all have one thing in common: (the desire to) defend our homeland," the Ukrainian leader said.

And, Zelensky continued, there is a common date that all Ukrainians and the "entire free world" will celebrate in unison:

One day after crossing back into Ukraine, 31 children have finally been reunited with their families, months after they were taken from their homes and moved to Russian-occupied territories.

A CNN team in Kyiv on Saturday watched as the last of the children climbed off a bus to embrace waiting family members, many unable to hold back the tears as months of separation came to an end.

Bogdan’s mother, Iryna, 51, said she had received very little information about her son in the six months they were apart. 

“There was no phone connection. I was very worried. I didn’t know anything, whether he was being abused, what was happening to him. ... My hands are still shaking,” she said.

The reunions took place in the Ukrainian capital and were coordinated by the humanitarian organization Save Ukraine. According to the group, it has now completed five missions bringing home Ukrainian children it says were forcibly deported by Russia.

At the same press conference, Kuleba said tragedy had struck during the latest rescue mission: One of the women traveling with the party – a grandmother – passed away during the journey. The woman had been due to pick up two children on the mission, but because of her death, the pair was not permitted to travel back to Ukraine.   

Remember: Allegations of widespread forced deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia form the basis of war crimes charges brought against Russian President Vladimir Putin and a senior official, Maria Lvova-Belova, by the International Criminal Court last month.

A report released in February detailed allegations of an expansive network of dozens of camps where kids underwent "political reeducation," including Russia-centric academic, cultural and, in some cases, military education.

Ukraine's head of the Office of the President recently estimated the total number of children forcibly removed from their homes is at least 20,000. Kyiv has said thousands of cases are already under investigation.

Russia has denied it is doing anything illegal, claiming it is bringing Ukrainian children to safety. 

The blasts in the eastern Ukrainian town of Chasiv Yar echo between buildings every minute or two, a CNN team reports.

Artillery, grad rockets and mortar fire were all audible in the town at different points Saturday — most of it believed to be outgoing from Ukrainian positions, but also some incoming from Russian forces.

The CNN team, which last visited Chasiv Yar eight days ago, said the amount of indirect fire appeared to have increased from the previous visit. It seems to indicate Ukrainian forces are working hard to keep open their key supply route into nearby Bakhmut, despite mounting Russian pressure.

Russian forces continue “to conduct offensive actions (in their attempt) to take full control of the city of Bakhmut," the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in its latest situation update Saturday.

Unofficial reports suggest Russia's troops have maintained their slow advance through the center of the long-embattled city, located just east of Chasiv Yar. The long fight for Bakhmut has seen Moscow's fighters begin to enter western parts of the city, according to the reports, with the railway station as a possible next key target.

Life under constant fire: Back in Chasiv Yar, Ivan, a university student majoring in psychology, appeared unfazed by the constant sound of fire.

Ivan and his mother Ira are among the few civilians left in the town. 

“As long as I can, I will stay here,” he said, before going back to sawing the trunk of a small tree. The logs will make a fire where his mother can cook.

Ira, a woman in her fifties with short hair and a gold pendant of the Virgin Mary around her neck, focused on the day’s chores — not the danger.

“We wake up every morning, light a fire and start preparing food,” she told CNN. “Every day Ivan fetches water and collects firewood.”

She’s already planning ahead for Orthodox Easter, next weekend. No church services have been conducted in a while, but she and Ivan will observe Easter with the few people left in their aging apartment complex.

While most residents have left, the town is far from empty, teeming with soldiers, tanks, armored personnel carriers and army trucks, which have left a thick layer of drying mud on the town’s streets.

The United States and its allies will work to shore up any weaknesses in their unprecedented sanctions against Russia when leaders of the global financial system meet in Washington, DC, next week, senior US Treasury officials told CNN.

The Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank will provide the latest venue for the US to trade best practices on preventing Moscow from funding its war machine in Ukraine, according to the officials.

Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, the US and its partners have imposed thousands of sanctions on the Kremlin. But observers note concerns over Russia's ability to reorient trade routes and acquire what it needs through neighboring countries or more permissive jurisdictions, such as the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.

The US has made major efforts to share information with allied countries and businesses on how the Kremlin is trying to evade sanctions, and it has seen encouraging results of late, Treasury officials said.

Lashing out in Moscow: While the US seeks to bolster the impact of Western sanctions, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev — who is now vice chair of the country's National Security Council — slammed Washington and European governments for their support of Ukraine.

In a lengthy post Saturday on the Russian social media network VKontakte, Medvedev claimed support for Kyiv has caused "real financial and political hell" for Europe, blaming inflation and high utility costs on the governments' support for Ukraine at "the detriment of their own citizens."

Some context: Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 only exacerbated existing issues for a global economy that was still recovering from the coronavirus pandemic. It pushed inflation to record highs and triggered an energy crisis in Europe.

Several rounds of Western sanctions have roiled markets further, driving up the cost of commodities like fuel. Meanwhile, efforts to address the global hunger crisis by boosting Ukrainian grain imports have angered some farmers in central and eastern European countries who say they can't compete.

Western governments, however, place the blame for economic turmoil squarely on Russian President Vladimir Putin's unprovoked invasion. And there are signs that more than a year of the unprecedented, US-led sanctions have left Russia weakened, if not incapacitated.

CNN's Anna Cooban and Mariya Knight contributed to this report.