Pope Leo XIV and other Church leaders around the world have called for peace following the United States' bombings in Iran.
US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday night the US had bombed Iran's main nuclear sites and Iran responded by launching a volley of missiles at Israel.
Pope Leo XIV addressed the international community on Sunday from the Vatican, urging leaders “to stop the tragedy of war before it becomes an irreparable abyss.”
“Today more than ever, humanity cries out and pleads for peace,” the pope said following his Angelus reflection. “[Those cries] must not be drowned out by the roar of weapons or by rhetoric that incites conflict.”
The bombings over the weekend were just the latest escalation in a dramatic war which has broken out across the region, after weeks of Israel and Iran trading blows.
Pope Leo XIV urged people not to forget the humanity of those who faced starvation or suffering as a result of these conflicts.
“In this dramatic scenario, which includes Israel and Palestine, the daily suffering of the population — especially in Gaza and other territories — risks being forgotten, even as the urgency for proper humanitarian support becomes ever more pressing,” he said.
“There are no distant conflicts when human dignity is at stake. War does not solve problems — on the contrary, it amplifies them and inflicts deep wounds on the history of nations that take generations to heal.”
The pope also evoked the most heartbreaking human toll of violence. “No armed victory can make up for a mother’s grief, a child’s fear, or a stolen future.”
He finished by calling for diplomacy to take the place of war.
"Let diplomacy silence the weapons; let nations shape their future through works of peace, not through violence and bloody conflict,” he said.
Pope Leo XIV's has made peace a hallmark of his papacy, with numerous conflicts raging during the first few weeks of his pontificate.
On Sunday, in Syria, more than 22 people were killed in a suicide bomb attack at an Orthodox Church in Damascus, a further sign of the terrible atrocities being committed across the Middle East.