Pope heads to Cameroon as separatists announce 3-day pause in fighting

Religion Pope heads to Cameroon as separatists announce 3-day pause in fighting April 15, 20265:14 AM ET By  The Associated Press Pope Leo XIV delivers his speech as he celebrates a Mass in the Saint Augustine Basilica in Annaba, Algeria, Tuesday, April 14, 2026, on the second day of an 11-day apostolic journey to Africa. Andrew Medichini/AP hide caption toggle caption Andrew Medichini/AP ALGIERS, Algeria — Pope Leo XIV is heading to the central African nation of Cameroon with a message of peace for its separatist region and for talks with President Paul Biya, the 93-year-old leader whose grip on power was extended for an eighth term in a widely disputed election last year. Middle East conflict Pope Leo brushes off Trump criticism amid growing Vatican–U.S. tensions over Iran war The Vatican says fighting corruption in the mineral-rich country and insisting on the correct uses of political authority are expected to be themes of Leo's visit, which starts Wednesday with his arrival in Yaounde, the capital. Leo was traveling to Cameroon from Algeria, the first stop on his four-nation Africa tour. The Vatican has made clear that Catholic social teaching disapproves of the types of authoritarian leaders that Leo is encountering on his visit, the first to the continent by history's first American pope. Sponsor Message Biya is the world's oldest leader and has led the central African nation since 1982. Leo will meet with Biya upon arrival at the presidential palace in the capital Yaounde. He'll then address Cameroon government authorities, civil service representatives and diplomats before visiting an orphanage run by a Catholic religious order of nuns. Cameroon authorities made a last-minute change to the program, the Vatican said Wednesday. Biya, and not the prime minister, will now deliver a speech before Leo addresses government authorities and the encounter will occur in the presidential palace, not a conference center. A map showing the pope's planned travel thro...