Pope Leo XIV has criticised a threat by U.S. President Donald Trump to destroy Iranian civilisation, describing the remark as “truly unacceptable” and warning that attacks on civilian infrastructure would breach international law.

Get today's headlines by email

Speaking on Tuesday as he left his residence in Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome, the pontiff delivered some of his strongest comments so far on the escalating tensions surrounding the conflict involving Iran.

He urged citizens, particularly in the United States, to press their elected representatives to reject further escalation and work toward peace.

Pope denounces threat against Iranian people

Addressing reporters outside the papal residence, Leo said the threat directed at Iran’s population was deeply troubling.

“Today as we all know there was this threat against all the people of Iran,” he said. “This is truly unacceptable.”

The pope was referring to remarks by President Trump warning that a “whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran fails to meet a new deadline tied to negotiations that include reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

Leo framed the issue not only as a political dispute but also as a moral one, stressing that the targeting of civilian infrastructure would violate international law.

Appeal for citizens to pressure political leaders

The pontiff also called on people of “good will” to make their voices heard with political leaders.

He urged Americans and others to contact their political representatives and members of Congress to demand opposition to war and renewed efforts toward diplomacy.

According to Leo, such public engagement is necessary to remind leaders of their responsibility to protect civilians and uphold international legal standards.

He said attacks on civilian infrastructure are “against international law” and represent a dangerous escalation in any conflict.

Warning against escalation

Leo reiterated concerns he had previously raised during his Easter message, in which he appealed for peace and warned against further military confrontation.

He repeated his view that the current conflict risks becoming an unjust and expanding war that fails to resolve underlying tensions.

“Especially a war which many people have said is an unjust war, which is continuing to escalate, and which is not resolving anything,” he said.

The pope also warned that threats against entire populations reflect deeper divisions and hostility that can fuel prolonged violence.

Call for peace and restraint

Leo concluded his remarks by emphasising the destructive consequences of war and the importance of pursuing peace.

Attacks targeting civilian infrastructure, he said, illustrate “the hatred, the division, the destruction human beings are capable of.”

He added that people around the world must work together to prevent further escalation and support peaceful solutions to the crisis.

The comments come amid rising tensions linked to negotiations over Iran’s role in regional shipping routes and the future of the Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy corridor.

Join the discussion?

Already a member?

Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 8 April 2026

View full article

The pope’s remarks highlight what many people around the world have been saying for years: threats against entire populations are beyond unacceptable.

When any leader (including Trump) uses language that implies wiping out a “civilisation,” it crosses every moral, legal and humanitarian line.

World leaders should call this out, and Americans absolutely deserve better than rhetoric that drags them toward another catastrophic conflict.

Escalation helps no one, and targeting civilians is a violation of international law. It’s long past time for people everywhere to demand restraint, accountability and a return to diplomacy before this spirals even further.

Interesting that Iran accepted a ceasefire after this. What's also not being pointed out is that at the end of this post by Trump were the words "God bless the people of Iran". Of course some people immediately get their knickers in a knot by saying Trump is an unhinged monster who is going to nuke Iran. Obviously this was never the case.

The pope should focus on cleaning up the Catholic Church and leave the cleanup of terrorist sponsoring dictatorships to Trump.

3 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

Interesting that Iran accepted a ceasefire after this. What's also not being pointed out is that at the end of this post by Trump were the words "God bless the people of Iran". Of course some people immediately get their knickers in a knot by saying Trump is an unhinged monster who is going to nuke Iran. Obviously this was never the case.

Saying “God bless the people of Iran” at the end does not cancel out everything that came before it. If you threaten massive destruction, talk about wiping out infrastructure, and use language about a whole civilization dying, people are obviously going to take that seriously. One sympathetic line at the end does not make the threat moderate. Reuters and AP both reported that Trump had issued extreme warnings and then agreed to a two-week pause shortly before the deadline.

Iran accepting a ceasefire after that does not prove the threat was harmless or that critics were hysterical. It can just as easily mean the pressure worked, or that both sides wanted an off-ramp before things got even worse. A crisis calming down at the last minute does not mean the danger was fake. U.S. strikes had already happened, and the reported deal was a conditional pause rather than some grand peaceful resolution.

And on Vance, even if people argue he did not explicitly threaten nuclear use, talking about weapons the U.S. had “not used yet” was plainly meant to sound menacing and to imply further escalation. So no, people were not irrational for hearing that as deeply alarming.

The bigger point is this: MAGA will frame this as a Trump victory, but a lot of Iranians and most normal observers will see it as the same pattern again — maximal threats, then backing off at the edge. That does not make him humane. It makes him reckless. If you keep shouting wolf, sooner or later either nobody believes you, or you feel pressured to prove you mean it. And if that day comes, who is he going to “stay firm” against? It will not be Russia. It will not be China. It will be some country seen as easier to hit, which is exactly why this kind of rhetoric is so dangerous.

3 minutes ago, Hummin said:

Saying “God bless the people of Iran” at the end does not cancel out everything that came before it. If you threaten massive destruction, talk about wiping out infrastructure, and use language about a whole civilization dying, people are obviously going to take that seriously. One sympathetic line at the end does not make the threat moderate. Reuters and AP both reported that Trump had issued extreme warnings and then agreed to a two-week pause shortly before the deadline.

Iran accepting a ceasefire after that does not prove the threat was harmless or that critics were hysterical. It can just as easily mean the pressure worked, or that both sides wanted an off-ramp before things got even worse. A crisis calming down at the last minute does not mean the danger was fake. U.S. strikes had already happened, and the reported deal was a conditional pause rather than some grand peaceful resolution.

And on Vance, even if people argue he did not explicitly threaten nuclear use, talking about weapons the U.S. had “not used yet” was plainly meant to sound menacing and to imply further escalation. So no, people were not irrational for hearing that as deeply alarming.

The bigger point is this: MAGA will frame this as a Trump victory, but a lot of Iranians and most normal observers will see it as the same pattern again — maximal threats, then backing off at the edge. That does not make him humane. It makes him reckless. If you keep shouting wolf, sooner or later either nobody believes you, or you feel pressured to prove you mean it. And if that day comes, who is he going to “stay firm” against? It will not be Russia. It will not be China. It will be some country seen as easier to hit, which is exactly why this kind of rhetoric is so dangerous.

Sure. Trump was going to bomb them and bomb them hard along with the IDF. He obviously was not going to wipe the entire Iranian civilisation off the map though. Again it sure seems like his threat worked.

21 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

Interesting that Iran accepted a ceasefire after this. What's also not being pointed out is that at the end of this post by Trump were the words "God bless the people of Iran". Of course some people immediately get their knickers in a knot by saying Trump is an unhinged monster who is going to nuke Iran. Obviously this was never the case.

Accepted on who’s terms?

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Pope Leo XIV has criticised a threat by U.S. President Donald Trump to destroy Iranian civilisation,

Pope Leo needs to realize that Trump does sometimes exaggerate when he talks

7 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Accepted on who’s terms?

If you are about to get the absolute crap bombed out of you who do you think has the stronger negotiation position?

11 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

Pope Leo needs to realize that Trump does sometimes exaggerate when he talks

Trump does not just “sometimes exaggerate.” Exaggeration is the core of his political style: hyperbole, self-glorification, strongman posturing, and constant moral theater. That is why people compare his rhetoric to authoritarian figures, including some former Arab dictators, who also relied on big words, grand praise, and the image of the leader as the only one who can save the nation. Recent coverage has also pointed to his increasingly theatrical and aggressive language, including religious framing around political events.

And beyond that, there is a kind of Joker-like performance to it: not depth, not principle, just spectacle, narcissism, grievance, and self-pity. He constantly casts himself as both the strongest man in the room and the biggest victim in the story. So saying he “sometimes exaggerates” completely misses it. The exaggeration is not a minor flaw. It is the method.

25 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

If you are about to get the absolute crap bombed out of you who do you think has the stronger negotiation position?

The party blocking 20% of the world’s oil and gas , 30% of the world’s fertilizer and most of the world’s helium.

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Pope Leo XIV has criticised a threat by U.S. President Donald Trump to destroy Iranian civilisation, describing the remark as “truly unacceptable” and warning that attacks on civilian infrastructure would breach international law.

But the pope clarified he is still all on board to destroy western civilisation

with "immigrants".

5 hours ago, Nick Carter icp said:

Pope Leo needs to realize that Trump does sometimes exaggerate when he talks

Trump needs to realise that words have consequences.

5 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

The party blocking 20% of the world’s oil and gas , 30% of the world’s fertilizer and most of the world’s helium.

Hopefully Greta and her gang will be along soon to break the blockade .

Collective punishment is a war crime ............and genocide