Rome, Mar 25 (AP) Pope Francis has presided over a special prayer for Ukraine that harked back to a century-old apocalyptic prophecy about peace and Russia.

Francis invited bishops, priests and ordinary faithful around the world to join him in the consecration prayer on Friday.

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An estimated 3,500 people, including cardinals, ambassadors and pilgrims, attended the service at St Peter's Basilica and the text of the prayer was translated into three dozen languages.

The ritual is of deep spiritual importance to many Catholics and a source of fascination to others.

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It deals with some of the more controversial aspects of the Catholic faith: purported visions of the Madonna, prophecies of hell, Soviet communism and the death of a pope.

The service was Francis' latest effort to rally prayers for an end to the war. The pope has yet to publicly condemn Russia by name, though his denunciations have grown increasingly outraged.

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Frankfurt: More than 130 refugees from Ukraine have arrived at a German airport, the first of 2,500 due to arrive via Moldova.

More than 376,000 people fleeing the war in Ukraine have arrived in Moldova, according to the UN refugee agency.

But the influx has been a challenge for the small, former Soviet republic, which is wedged between Ukraine and Romania.

Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said Germany is working with allies to airlift refugees to countries farther away from the war.

She planned to welcome the new arrivals on Friday along with Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who said in a statement that Germany “can be a hub for fair distribution in Europe” of refugees. More than 3.7 million people have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion started a month ago. (AP)

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