Pope Leo XIV has strongly
advocated for peace during his Sunday Angelus prayer
in St. Peter’s Square and called for international diplomacy.
Last night,
Trump ordered U.S. forces to conduct strikes on Iran’s three primary nuclear facilities
, coordinating with an Israeli assault. This represents a significant
escalation of conflict in the Middle East
, as Iran promised to defend itself.
“Every member of the international community has a moral responsibility: to stop the tragedy of war before it becomes an irreparable abyss,” Pope Leo said during his weekly prayer with pilgrims.
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Following an acknowledgment of the troubling situation, the first American pope emphasized that “now, more than ever, humanity calls out for peace, a plea that requires rational attention and should not be silenced.”
“No armed victory can compensate for the pain of mothers, the fear of children, the stolen future. Let diplomacy silence the weapons, let nations chart their future with peace efforts, not with violence and bloody conflict,” he continued.
Pope Leo also brought attention to Israel’s conflict with Palestine. “In this dramatic scenario, which includes Israel and Palestine, the daily suffering of the population, especially in Gaza and other territories, risks being forgotten, where the need for adequate humanitarian support is becoming increasingly urgent,” he said.
Within Iran, there is an increasing apprehension that the rising tensions might drive the nation into a more lethal and destabilizing conflict in the region, following over a week of hostilities with Israel.
The United States “opted for a dangerous military operation and aggression against the people of Iran,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday, and he separately warned of “everlasting consequences.”
During a brief press conference last night, Trump thanked the armed forces and made a pointed appeal to faith after the U.S. completed its operation.
“And I want to just thank everybody, and in particular, God. I want to just say we love you, God, and we love our great military. Protect them,” Trump said.
Prior to his papacy, Leo openly criticized
Donald Trump
, frequently posting disapproving remarks about the former US president and Vice President JD Vance on X in recent years. The Vatican has not verified whether the pope owned the X account, which was under the handle @drprevost and was deactivated following his election.
The late Pope Francis, who served for 12 years, was a vocal opponent of Trump. In January, he condemned the president’s plan to deport millions of migrants, calling it a disgrace. He had earlier asserted that Trump’s stance on immigration disqualified him from being considered Christian.
“A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian,” he remarked when questioned about Trump in 2016.
