Pope says the world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants and condemns leaders who spend billions on wars – after Trump’s social media attacks

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“The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is not enough to rebuild,” the pontiff said after Trump attacked him again on social media.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2026/4/16/iran-war-live-pakistan-in-push-for-new-round-of-us-iran-peace-negotiations?update=4497180

The Pope has claimed the world is ‘being ravaged by a handful of tyrants’ as his feud with Donald Trump escalates.

Pope Leo XIV made the unusually forceful remarks during a trip to Cameroon on Thursday after the US President launched a tirade against him over his repeated criticism of the war in Iran.

Leo, the first American pope, also decried leaders who use religious language to justify wars and urged a ‘decisive change of course’.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15738769/Pope-says-world-ravaged-handful-tyrants-condemns-leaders-spend-billions-wars-Trumps-social-media-attacks.html

Popes have spoken out on politics before. But with Trump and Pope Leo it’s different
The ongoing war of words between President Trump and Pope Leo XIV is unparalleled in modern history. It’s not new for popes to speak out on political issues, historians of religion say, but Trump’s insults toward the pope are without precedent.

The direct nature of Pope Leo’s responses as well as him being the first American pope are also playing a role in how the exchange is being interpreted by the public.

The recent back and forth started with Leo’s calling for peace in response to the war in Iran, and continued with him warning of the “delusion of omnipotence” and writing that “God does not bless any conflict.”

It escalated this past weekend when Trump accused Leo of being “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” a potential response to Catholic leaders’ calling for more humanity in the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Trump also claimed Leo was in favor of Iran having nuclear weapons. Trump continued his attacks Tuesday night with another social media post, saying, “Will someone please tell Pope Leo that Iran has killed at least 42,000 innocent, completely unarmed, protesters in the last two months.”

https://www.npr.org/2026/04/15/nx-s1-5779690/pope-leo-donald-trump-war-iran-vance-history

h/t Emeraldlight