Unprecedented Confrontation.. Trump Renewed His Attack on the Pope of the Vatican

SadaNews - The debate continues between US President Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV in an unprecedented confrontation arising from the Pope's increasing criticism in recent weeks of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Trump renewed his criticism of the Vatican Pope today, Wednesday, stating that Iran's possession of a nuclear bomb is "absolutely unacceptable." This comes despite Leo not supporting Iran's nuclear armament.

Trump said on Truth Social, "Can someone tell Pope Leo that Iran has killed no less than 42,000 completely innocent unarmed demonstrators over the past two months, and that their possession of a nuclear bomb is utterly unacceptable?".

Trump harshly criticized the Pope last Sunday, describing him as "very bad," and claimed that he is lenient towards crime and catastrophic in foreign policy, following the Pope's comments on the war on Iran. The Pope then responded in remarks to Reuters on Monday, stating his intention to continue criticizing the war despite Trump's statements.

On Tuesday, the Pope warned of the danger of democracies slipping into "the tyranny of the majority," in a message issued by the Vatican two days after Trump's attack on the head of the Catholic Church.

The first American Pope wrote in a message to participants in a Vatican meeting about the use of power in democratic societies that democracies remain sound only if they are rooted in moral values.

The Pope stated in the message, "Without this foundation, (democracy) is at risk of turning into the tyranny of the majority or into a guise for the dominance of economic and technological elites."

The Pope also wrote on X on Tuesday, "God's heart is torn by wars, violence, injustice, and lies. But He is not with the wicked, nor with the tyrants, nor with the proud; rather, God's heart is with the small and the humble, with them He advances His Kingdom of love and peace, day after day. Wherever there is love and service, there God will be."

During a mass at St. Peter's Cathedral on Sunday, the Pope called for an end to the war on Iran.

Criticizing Trump, the Pope said, "Enough worship of self and money, enough show of strength, enough war."

He had previously described Trump's threat to destroy Iranian civilization as unacceptable and criticized his anti-immigrant policies in the United States as "inhumane."

So far, there seems to be no signs of a retreat in the unprecedented confrontation between the leader of the world's most powerful army and the leader of 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide. The US president has refused to apologize to the Pope, stating, "There is nothing to apologize for. He is wrong."

Meanwhile, Italian politicians and religious leaders have expressed solidarity with the Pope following Trump's criticisms of him.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday, "I express my solidarity with Pope Leo, and frankly, I would not feel comfortable in a society where religious leaders do what political leaders dictate to them."

Former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi from the center-left said, "We haven't seen such blatant hostile behavior against the Pope in centuries," adding that it is essential for Catholics and others alike to defend Pope Leo.

On February 28th, the United States and Israel began a war on Iran, resulting in thousands of deaths and injuries, including hundreds of children and women, and widespread destruction of military sites and civilian infrastructure, before a ceasefire was announced last Wednesday for two weeks.

Washington and Tel Aviv accuse Tehran of possessing nuclear and missile programs that threaten Israel and regional countries friendly to the United States, while Iran asserts that its nuclear program is peaceful and does not seek to produce nuclear weapons nor threatens other countries.