Pope Leo XIV issued his third sharp denunciation of President Donald Trump’s military offensive against Iran in under a week, warning on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, that the escalating bloodshed risks creating “an irreparable abyss” between nations as civilian deaths rise and U.S. troops return home in flag-draped coffins.
Speaking from Villa Barberini in Castel Gandolfo, the 70-year-old pontiff from Chicago spoke bluntly about Operation Epic Fury, the large-scale air and ground assault Trump began on February 28 without congressional approval. The campaign has already taken the lives of six American service members, destroyed an elementary school filled with young girls in the southern city of Minab, and pushed the Middle East dangerously close to a full-scale war.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the worsening conflict, urging an immediate ceasefire and warning that the strikes could ignite “a wider regional conflict with grave consequences for civilians and regional stability.”
“Stability and peace cannot be achieved through threats or weaponry, which bring destruction, sorrow, and death, but only via a reasonable, sincere, and accountable dialogue,” Pope Leo XIV stated in remarks that marked his most forceful criticism yet of the Trump administration’s Iran policy.
The Pope’s rebuke sharply contrasts with Trump’s fiery defense of the assault. From Mar-a-Lago, the president declared the strikes would “continue, uninterrupted throughout the week or, as long as necessary” and would hit Iran “with a force that has never been seen before.”
The casualties paint a grim picture. Iranian officials report that more than 1,000 people have been killed since Trump ordered the offensive, with the number still rising as the campaign enters its fifth day. Approximately 165 schoolgirls and staff died when the Minab elementary school was struck. In Tehran alone, 60 attacks fell within a single day, killing 57 people according to the Tehran Province Red Crescent Society. In Tel Aviv, one foreign caregiver in her 40s was killed by an Iranian ballistic missile, and dozens more across Israel were injured.
The assault successfully killed Iran’s 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and around 40 top Iranian commanders, including Abdolrahim Mousavi, the chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian described the operation as “an open war against Muslims” and vowed retaliation.
Pope Leo XIV has now spoken out against the conflict three times since the bombing began on Feb. 28. During his Sunday Angelus address on March 1, he told the crowds in St. Peter’s Square that he was “following with deep concern what is happening in the Middle East and Iran in these dramatic hours.” He renewed his call on Tuesday, urging global leaders to “truly seek to promote dialogue” and “find solutions, without weapons, to resolve problems.”
Christopher Hale, a former Obama aide who runs the publication “Letters from Leo,” said sources close to the Pope called the Iran operation “immoral, illegal, and a grave threat to the entire human family.” The Vatican had earlier declined Trump’s invitation for Pope Leo to join what the president refers to as his “Board of Peace.”
The pontiff has become one of Trump’s most vocal critics since the president took office on January 20, 2025. Pope Leo voiced alarm over Trump’s January capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, urging all parties to respect Venezuela’s sovereignty and legal norms, and he has repeatedly condemned the administration’s treatment of detained migrants. He has excluded the United States entirely from his international travel itinerary this year.
Iran’s counterattacks have spread violence across the Gulf, striking U.S. bases in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. Explosions shook Dubai as missiles lit up the sky. Russian President Vladimir Putin labeled Khamenei’s killing “murder” and a “cynical violation of all norms of human morality.”
Trump remained unwavering on Truth Social, warning Iran on March 1: “THEY BETTER NOT DO THAT, HOWEVER, BECAUSE IF THEY DO, WE WILL HIT THEM WITH A FORCE THAT HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE!” He acknowledged the likelihood of more American casualties, saying in his video announcement that “that often happens in war,” but insisted “we’re doing this not for now, we’re doing this for the future and it is a noble mission.”
The Pope offered a contrasting message in his Lenten reflection prior to the conflict, urging people to “cultivate kindness and respect in our families, among our friends, at work, on social media, in political debates, in the media and in Christian communities.” He encouraged believers to ensure that “words of hatred will give way to words of hope and peace.”
As Wednesday broke over the Middle East, neither side appeared ready to retreat. Tehran has turned into a war zone, while Israeli cities remain on alert for incoming missiles. The elementary school tragedy, which killed roughly 165 girls and staff, has become a rallying point for critics who question whether Operation Epic Fury’s strategic gains outweigh the escalating human suffering.
Pope Leo XIV ended his Tuesday remarks with a plea that now feels painfully distant from the on-the-ground reality: “May diplomacy regain its proper role, and may the well-being of peoples, who yearn for peaceful existence founded on justice, be upheld. And let us continue to pray for peace.”
The bombs, however, continue to fall.
