VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV on Sunday condemned a new wave of attacks in Africa&#39;s <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/mali-junta-defense-minister-killed-in-attack-near-bamako-family" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sahel region</a>, particularly in Mali and Chad, after dozens of people were killed by militantgroups. &quot;I have learned with concern of the reports of increasing violence in the Sahel region, particularly in Chad and Mali, which have been hit by recent terrorist attacks,&quot; said Pope Leo following his Regina Coeli prayer in St Peter&#39;s Square. &quot;I offer my prayers for the victims and express my solidarity with all those who are suffering. I hope that all forms of violence will cease, and I encourage every effort toward peace and development in that beloved land.&quot; On Saturday, security sources said dozens of people in central Mali had been killed the day before by an Al-Qaeda-linked group that had already killed at least 30 people in attacks on villages earlier on Wednesday. In Chad, Boko Haram killed at least 26 army personnel last week, prompting the government on Thursday to declare a 20-day state of emergency in the Lady Chad region.

This photo taken and handout on May 10, 2026 by The Vatican Media shows Pope Leo XIV during Regina Caeli prayer in The Vatican. (AFP)

Africa

Pope Leo XIV condemns militant attacks in Mali and Chad and offers prayers for victims amid rising violence across Africa’s Sahel region.

Pope condemns fresh violence in Sahel after dozens killed

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Pope Leo XIV on Friday condemned the ongoing&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-israel-war-on-iran-day-56" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">conflict in Iran</a>, saying too many innocent lives had been lost and calling on all parties, including the United States, to pursue&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-interior-minister-meets-us-ambassador-baker-to-discuss-peace-efforts" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">dialogue</a>&nbsp;and respect international law, according to Vatican News. The Pope made the remarks aboard the return flight to Rome following a four-nation&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pope-visits-eq-guinea-on-last-stop-of-africa-tour" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apostolic Journey through Africa</a>, speaking to journalists departing from Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. &quot;As a pastor, I cannot be in favor of war,&quot; he said. &quot;I would like to encourage everyone to make efforts to seek answers that come from a culture of peace, not hatred and division.&quot; The pontiff said he had received a letter from families of children killed on the first day of attacks in Iran. He also told reporters he carries a photo of a Muslim child in Lebanon, spotted holding a &quot;Welcome Pope Leo&quot; sign during the papal visit. The child was later killed in the war&#39;s final phase, as reported by Vatican News. On the prospect of regime change in Iran, the Pope declined to take a position, saying the more pressing concern was protecting civilian lives. &quot;It is not even clear what regime currently exists after the first days of attacks by Israel and the United States on Iran,&quot; he said. Asked about Iran&#39;s recent execution of an opposition member, the Pope did not limit his condemnation to any single government. &quot;I condemn all actions that are unjust. I condemn the taking of people&#39;s lives. I condemn capital punishment,&quot; he said. &quot;Human life is to be respected &mdash; from conception to natural death.&quot; Migration Speaking in Spanish, the Pope addressed the migration debate ahead of his planned trip to Spain. He acknowledged a state&#39;s right to regulate its borders but said wealthier nations bear responsibility for the conditions driving&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/7900-people-died-disappeared-on-migration-routes-in-2025-un" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">emigration</a>&nbsp;from the Global South. &quot;Africa is often seen by many as a place to extract minerals, to take its wealth for the benefit of other countries,&quot; he said, per Vatican News. He called for greater investment in African nations so people are not compelled to leave. He added that regardless of policy, migrants remain entitled to basic dignity. &quot;When people arrive, they are human beings and deserve the respect that belongs to every human being,&quot; he said. Papal diplomacy Asked whether meeting with authoritarian heads of state amounted to lending them moral legitimacy, the Pope defended the Holy See&#39;s policy of maintaining diplomatic relations across governments. &quot;There&#39;s an awful lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to promote justice, to promote humanitarian causes,&quot; he said. The pontiff stated that quiet diplomacy had at times secured the release of political prisoners and addressed crises of hunger and disease, according to the Vatican News.

Pope Leo XIV speaks to journalists aboard the flight returning to Rome after his African tour, addressing war, migration and global conflicts. (Vatican News)

Europe

Pope Leo XIV condemned the Middle East War, citing civilian deaths, and said he cannot support war. He pontiff urged dialogue and respect for international law to end the conflict. 

Pope Leo XIV condemns Middle East conflict, calls for immediate peace talks

VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV on Sunday urged &quot;those who have the power to unleash wars&quot; to &quot;choose peace&quot; in his first Easter blessing as pontiff with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/usisrael-war-on-iran-day-37" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Middle East conflict</a>&nbsp;raging. Catholics around the world marked the holiday under the shadow of a war that began with US-Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28. It has drawn the entire whole region into the conflict while convulsing the global economy. &quot;We are growing accustomed to violence, resigning ourselves to it, and becoming indifferent. Indifferent to the deaths of thousands of people,&quot; the pope told a crowd in St Peter&#39;s Square. The leader of the world&#39;s 1.4 billion Catholics, who was elected in May 2025, also called for a prayer vigil at the Vatican on April 11. He paid tribute to his predecessor pope Francis who last appeared in public on Easter Sunday last year &ndash; a few hours before his death. Leo has repeatedly called for peace in the Middle East and this week directly urged US President Donald Trump to find an &quot;off-ramp&quot;. On Sunday, he spoke of &quot;a world ravaged by wars and marked by a hatred and indifference that make us feel powerless in the face of evil&quot;. In Jerusalem, there was silence in the alleyways of the Old City, left deserted by Israel&#39;s war on Gaza and now wider the Middle East conflict. Israeli authorities have severely restricted access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where the faithful commemorate Christ&#39;s crucifixion and resurrection, because of security considerations. On routes approaching the church, police checkpoints screened a small number of worshippers allowed near the site. All shops in the area were closed, heightening the sense of emptiness. &quot;It&#39;s very hard for all of us because it&#39;s our holiday... It&#39;s really hard to want to pray but to come here and find nothing. Everything is closed,&quot; said Christina Toderas, 44, from Romania. Otmar Wassermann, 65, had also attempted to enter the Holy Sepulchre but failed. &quot;I must say I was somewhat frustrated,&quot; he told AFP, recalling how the feast is generally celebrated every year. &nbsp;&#39;Situation is tragic&#39; &quot;The doors are still closed,&quot; the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, said in his Easter Vigil homily at the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/easter-in-jerusalem-disrupted-by-war-and-restrictions-at-holy-sepulchre" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Holy Sepulchre</a>. Pizzaballa was prevented by Israeli police from holding mass in the church last Sunday, an incident that sparked international indignation. &quot;The silence is almost absolute, broken perhaps by the distant sound of what war continues to sow in this holy and torn land,&quot; he said, according to a text of his sermon issued by his office. In Lebanon, majority Christian areas in the south of the country are caught in the crossfire as <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/lebanon-says-46-rescuers-5-medical-staff-killed-in-israelhezbollah-war" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Israel repeatedly strikes</a> the country. In Debel, close to the Israeli border, inhabitants marked Easter Sunday against the sound of bombardment around their village, now almost totally cut off from the world and dependent on aid deliveries. &quot;The situation is tragic,&quot; town notable Joseph Attieh told AFP by phone. &quot;People are terrified, and the sound of shelling and gunfire has not stopped for a moment since last night. We haven&#39;t been able to sleep. &quot;We are putting our trust in God,&quot; Attieh said, since &quot;this is the only glimmer of hope we will not give up on&quot;. The war has also impacted the lives of Christian minorities in other parts of the Middle East. In Dubai, masses have been cancelled until further notice as a security precaution. In Damascus, Catholic authorities said Easter celebrations would be restricted to mass following an attack on a Christian town in central Syria.

Pope Leo XIV greets people at the end of the Easter vigil as part of the Holy Week celebrations, at St Peter's basilica in the Vatican on April 4, 2026. (AFP)

Middle East

Pope Leo XIV urged world leaders to choose peace in his first Easter blessing amid Middle East war, as conflict disrupted Holy Land services and cast a shadow on global Easter observances.

Articles tagged with "Vatican City"

Pope condemns fresh violence in Sahel after dozens killed

Pope Leo XIV condemns Middle East conflict, calls for immediate peace talks

'Choose peace': Pope marks first Easter under cloud of Mideast war