This story has been updated.
By Gary Gately
Pope Leo XIV welcomed the two-week ceasefire deal between the U.S. and Iran on Wednesday as “a sign of genuine hope” and called for dialogue and prayers for lasting peace after hours of “extreme tension” for the Mideast and entire world.
Speaking to tens of thousands of the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience, the first U.S.-born pontiff said: “Following these recent hours of extreme tension for the Middle East and for the whole world, I welcome with satisfaction and as a sign of genuine hope the announcement of an immediate two-week truce.”
Leo called on leaders to pursue the “delicate diplomatic work” and urged prayers
”in the hope that readiness for dialogue may become the means to resolve other situations of conflict in the world.”
“Only through a return to negotiations can the war end,” he said.
The leader of the 1.4 billion-member Catholic Church also renewed his invitation to the faithful to join him in a prayer vigil for peace to be celebrated at St. Peter’s Basilica 6 p.m. Rome time on Saturday and livestreamed online.
The ceasefire, announced by Trump on social media, came after his threat Tuesday morning to destroy Iran’s “whole civilization” if the leaders of the Islamic Republic did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil and gas tankers.
Within hours, Trump’s threat drew a sharp rebuke from Pope Leo, who called it “truly unacceptable” and urged U.S. citizens to contact congressional lawmakers tell them to end the Iran war while reminding them that attacks on civilian infrastructure violate international law and “are also a sign of the hatred, division, and destruction that the human being is capable of.”
The Holy See Press Office noted Wednesday morning that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said that while Israel supports Trump’s decision to stop strikes on Iran for two weeks, the ceasefire does not apply to Lebanon.
That came as Israel’s military attacked 100 sites across the country within 10 minutes Wednesday, killing more than 250, Amnesty International reported. That marked Israel’s largest coordinated wave of strikes on Lebanon since its offensive on Lebanon began March 2, Amnesty International reported.
More than 1,500 people have been killed, some 4,500 injured and more than a million displaced across Lebanon, including 350,000 children, the human rights agency noted, warning of a growing humanitarian crisis, with dire shortages of safe shelter, food and basic healthcare.
“Just hours after the world cautiously welcomed news of a US-Israeli ceasefire with Iran, in Lebanon the nightmare for civilians has become more terrifying,” Heba Morayef, Amnesty’s regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement. “Civilians in Lebanon are already paying an unbearable price with children, health workers and journalists among those killed – the latest attacks will only escalate this devastating human toll.”
The day before, the Vatican released a message from Pope Leo to the residents of Debel, Lebanon, after ongoing Israeli attacks prevented the Vatican’s nuncio to the country from delivering humanitarian aid.
“In your misfortune, in the injustice you endure, in the feeling of abandonment you experience, you are very close to Jesus. You are close to Him also on this Easter Day when He conquered the forces of evil, and which resonates for you as a promise of the future,” reads the message, signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
