Pope warns of world ravaged by ‘tyrants’ in the wake of Trump attacks
By Christopher Lamb, Sophie Tanno, CNN
Bamenda (CNN) — Pope Leo warned that the world is being ravaged by “tyrants,” in forceful comments made after US President Donald Trump attacked the pontiff for his stance on the war with Iran.
Leo has emerged as strong critic of the conflict and his speech again preached a message of peace and rebuked leaders using religious language to justify war.
“The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants, yet it is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters,” Leo said in a speech during a visit to Cameroon’s largest city, Bamenda, on Thursday.
Later in the day, Trump appeared to dismiss his recent back-and-forth with the pontiff, telling reporters he has “a right to disagree with the pope.”
“The pope made a statement. He says Iran can have a nuclear weapon. I say Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
The pope arrived in Cameroon’s capital of Yaounde on Wednesday, the latest stop on a four-country tour of Africa. On arrival he urged the nation’s government to root out corruption amid conflict there which erupted between government forces and Anglophone separatist groups.
The pope traveled to Bamenda Thursday where he was greeted by thousands as he arrived in the popemobile with many waving “peace branches.” Among the crowd was Jamconfidence Masha, who works as a clothes maker in Bamenda – her shop was destroyed during the conflict. She said the pope was bringing a message of “love, hope and unity.”
The choice of location is significant: Bamenda is the epicenter of a bloody civil conflict that has resulted in more 65,000 dead and over half a million displaced.
The pope heard a series of testimonies from those caught up in the crisis include some nuns who had been kidnapped.
Also during the speech, the pope condemned those who “manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic and political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth.”
On the exploitation of African resources, the pope was also strong in his choice of words. “Those who rob your land of its resources generally invest much of the profit in weapons, thus perpetuating an endless cycle of destabilization and death,” he said.
“It is a world turned upside down, an exploitation of God’s creation that must be denounced and rejected by every honest conscience.”
Trump began his attacks on Leo on Sunday evening, denouncing his stance on the Iran war and saying he’s “terrible for foreign policy.”
“We don’t like a pope that’s going to say that it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon. … He’s a man that doesn’t think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon so they can blow up the world,” Trump told reporters, adding, “I’m not a fan of Pope Leo.”
Leo later responded aboard his flight Monday, saying, “The things I say are not meant as attacks on anyone,” but added, “I have no fear of the Trump administration or speaking out loudly of the message of the Gospel.”
Trump told reporters on Thursday that he was not “fighting” with the pope, insisting that the pontiff can “say what he wants.”
The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Antonia Mortensen contributed reporting.
