Pope Leo XIV slams “handful of tyrants” over wars

Pope Leo XIV has sharply criticised global leaders, saying the world is being “ravaged by a handful of tyrants” who are directing billions of dollars toward war instead of humanitarian needs.

During a visit to Cameroon, the pontiff condemned politicians who, in his words, use religious rhetoric to justify conflicts and called for a “decisive change of course,” Caliber.Az reports, citing Reuters.

He noted that vast sums are being spent on destruction, while resources for education, healthcare, and reconstruction remain out of reach.

“It is a world ​turned upside down, an exploitation of God’s creation that must be denounced and rejected by every honest conscience,” the Pope said, adding that religion must not be used to justify war or political gain.

Those who “manipulate … the very name of God,” he said, are dragging faith “into darkness and filth.”

Leo XIV’s visit to Cameroon comes amid the ongoing conflict in the country’s English-speaking regions, where local authorities say thousands of people have been killed in recent years and hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee their homes.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov