Pope says the world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants and condemns leaders who spend billions on wars - after Trump's social media attacks

Published: 12:50, 16 April 2026 | Updated: 12:57, 16 April 2026 The Pope has claimed the world is 'being ravaged by a handful of tyrants' as his feud with Donald Trump escalates. Pope Leo XIV made the unusually forceful remarks during a visit to Cameroon on Thursday after the US President launched a tirade against him over his repeated criticism of the war in Iran. Leo, the first American pope, also decried leaders who used religious language to justify wars and urged a 'decisive change of course'. He condemned 'an endless cycle of destabilisation and death' on a visit to a 'bloodstained' region of Cameroon that has been gripped by an English-speaking separatist insurgency for nearly a decade. 'Those who rob your land of its resources generally invest much of the profit in weapons, thus perpetuating an endless cycle of destabilisation and death,' the US-born pontiff said in a speech in a cathedral in the northwestern city of Bamenda, the centre of the insurgency. It comes amid a growing row between Trump and the head of the Catholic Church, who has in recent weeks.  Trump labelled the head of the Catholic Church a 'very liberal person' and said he is 'WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy'. He also said that Leo, 70, was only made Pope 'because he was an American', adding: 'If I wasn't in the White House, Leo wouldn't be in the Vatican.' The Pope has claimed the world is 'being ravaged by a handful of tyrants' as his feud with Donald Trump escalates It comes after the US President labelled the head of the Catholic Church a 'very liberal person' and said he is 'WEAK on Crime , and terrible for Foreign Policy' Trump was exiting Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews when he aired a litany of grievances against the pontiff. He said: 'I don't think he's doing a very good job. He likes crime I guess. 'We don't like a pope who says it's ok to have a nuclear weapon. We don't want a pope that says crime is ok. I am not a fan of Pope Leo.' He then sparked further controversy after posting an AI-generated image seemingly depicting himself as Jesus Christ, triggering backlash among his usual supporters and Catholics. The Pope said on Monday that he plans to continue speaking out against war, telling Reuters: 'I don't want to get into a debate with him.' Speaking aboard the papal flight to Algiers, where Leo began a 10-day tour to four African countries, he added: 'I don't think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing. 'I will continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialog and multilateral relationships among the states to look for just solutions to problems. 'Too many people are suffering in the world today. Too many innocent people are being killed. And I think someone has to stand up and say there's a better way.' He condemned 'an endless cycle of destabilisation and death' on a visit to the 'bloodstained' region of Bamenda in Cameroon The pontiff has repeatedly condemned the war in Iran, saying it has caused ‘absurd and inhuman violence’.  Last Saturday he told worshippers at St Peter’s Basilica: 'Enough of the idolatry of self and money! Enough of the display of power! Enough of war!' He then criticised the president over his threats against Iran, when he warned that 'a whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again'. The Pope called it a 'truly unacceptable' statement. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.