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US President Donald Trump has criticised Pope Leo XIV as “terrible” in an unusual, direct attack on the Pontiff, who responded by vowing to continue denouncing war and suffering.The president’s comments came after the Pope had spoken out, with growing force, against the US-Israeli war on Iran and the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies.”Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social late on Sunday.Pope Leo, the first Pontiff from the US, responded Monday by saying that he would continue to denounce war, adding that the Christian message, rooted in the primacy of peace, was being “abused”.”I will continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue and multilateral relationships among the states to look for just solutions to problems,” he told Reuters aboard a papal flight to Algiers, where he is embarking on a 10-day tour to four African countries.”Too many people are suffering in the world today,” Leo said. “Too many innocent people are being killed. And I think someone has to stand up and say there’s a better way.”Catholics on social media lambasted Trump for attacking the leader of the 1.4bn-member Catholic Church.”There is no ambiguity about the situation now,” Massimo Faggioli, an expert on the papacy, told Reuters.He compared the comments to efforts by the leaders of Germany and Italy during World War II to draw the late Pope Pius XII to support their causes.”Not even Hitler or Mussolini attacked the pope so directly and publicly,” said Faggioli.Archbishop Paul S Coakley, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, said that he was disheartened by Trump’s comments.Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned Trump’s criticism of Leo’s comments as “unacceptable”, saying that “it is right and normal for (Leo) to call for peace and to condemn all forms of war”.Leo, originally from Chicago, is known for choosing his words carefully.He has emerged as an outspoken critic of the conflict with Iran in recent weeks and decried the “madness of war” in a peace appeal on Saturday.Last year, he questioned whether the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies were in line with the church’s pro-life teachings, and called for a “deep reflection” about the way migrants are being treated in the United States.Trump wrote in his post on Sunday that “Leo should get his act together as Pope”, later telling reporters he was “not a big fan” of the Pontiff.Trump’s broadside against Leo also accused him of being “weak on nuclear weapons”, several days after the Pope said the US president’s threat to destroy Iranian civilisation was “truly unacceptable”.In a speech on Palm Sunday last month in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, the Pope said God rejected the prayers of leaders who start wars and have their “hands full of blood”, calling the conflict in Iran “atrocious”.Leo has also called on Trump to find an “off-ramp” to end the conflict and “decrease the amount of violence”.In his post, Trump suggested that Leo was only elected to lead the Catholic Church last year “because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J Trump”.Leo said Monday that he was not a politician and did not want to be drawn into a debate with Trump.Trump also had a rocky relationship with Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, who criticised Trump’s immigration policy proposals when he first ran for president and suggested Trump was “not a Christian”.Trump had called Francis “disgraceful” in early 2016. Related Story Source link
After a sleepless and at times tense night in Islamabad, Iranian and US officials ended their highest-level talks in decades without a breakthrough, but 11 sources familiar with the negotiations said dialogue was still alive.The weekend meeting to resolve the conflict between the US and Iran, held four days after last Tuesday's ceasefire announcement, was the first direct encounter between US and Iranian officials in more than a decade and the most senior engagement since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.Inside Islamabad's luxury Serena Hotel, the talks unfolded across two separate wings and one common area – one for the US side, one for the Iranians and one for trilateral meetings involving Pakistani mediators, operational staff told Reuters.Among the slew of issues at stake was the Strait of Hormuz, a major transit point for global energy supplies that Iran has effectively blocked but the US has vowed to reopen, as well as Iran's nuclear programme and international sanctions on Tehran.Phones were not allowed in the main room, forcing delegates, including US Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, to step out during breaks to relay messages back home, two of the sources said.’There was a strong hope in the middle of the talks that there would be a breakthrough and the two sides would reach an agreement. However, things changed within no time,’ a Pakistani government source said.Another source involved in the talks said the parties came ‘very close’ to an agreement and were ‘80% there’, before running into decisions that could not be settled on the spot.Two senior Iranian sources described the atmosphere as heavy and unfriendly, adding that while Pakistan tried to soften the mood, neither side showed any willingness to ease tensions.At one point, atmosphere began to liftNevertheless the two Iranian sources said that by early Sunday morning the atmosphere had shown some improvement, and the possibility of a one-day extension began to take shape.However, differences persisted. A US source said the Iranians did not properly understand that the core US aim was to have a deal that ensured Iran would never obtain a nuclear weapon. Among Iran's concerns was a distrust of US intentions.This account, based on sources who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, offers a first account of the internal dynamics of the meeting, how the mood in the room shifted, how talks ended after signs the meeting might be extended, and how further dialogue remains on the cards.There was no immediate response from the Iranian government to a request for comment on the issues reported in this story.Monday US President Donald Trump said Iran had ‘called this morning’ and that ‘they'd like to work a deal.’ Reuters could not immediately verify the assertion.A US official, referring to Trump's comment, said there was continued engagement between the US and Iran and forward motion on trying to get to an agreement.Asked for comment, White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said the US position had never shifted in the Islamabad meeting.’Iran can never have a nuclear weapon, and President Trump’s negotiating team stuck to this red line and many others. Engagement continues toward an agreement,” she said.'Ups and downs'A Middle East-based diplomat said conversations between mediators and the Americans have continued since Vance left Islamabad, while the source involved in the talks said Pakistan was still passing messages between Tehran and Washington.’I want to tell you that a full effort is still on to resolve the issues,’ Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Monday.Despite numerous obstacles to peace, both sides appear to have strong reasons to consider de-escalation.The US strikes appear unpopular at home and look unlikely to topple Iran's theocratic ruling system, while Tehran's strangling of energy supplies is hurting the global economy and pushing up inflation months before US midterm elections.Also, war damage to Iran's ailing economy risks leaving the authorities there weaker internally just weeks after protests they were able to put down only with mass killings.In Islamabad, the longtime foes had gathered to try to chart a path to a long-term settlement, after a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire paused six weeks of war that has killed thousands of people and disrupted the world's energy supplies.Central to the dispute is a belief among Western countries and Israel that Iran wants a nuclear bomb. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons.A White House official said the US wanted Iran to end all uranium enrichment, dismantle all major nuclear enrichment facilities, turn over its highly enriched uranium, accept a broader peace, agree a security framework that includes regional allies, end funding for regional proxies and fully open Hormuz, charging no tolls.Iran’s demands included a guaranteed permanent ceasefire, assurances of no future strikes on Iran and its allies in the region, lifting of primary and secondary sanctions, unfreezing of all assets, recognition of its right to enrichment and continued control of Hormuz, Iranian sources have said.Four of the 11 sources said that at times the dialogue appeared close to producing at least a framework understanding, but unraveled over Iran's nuclear programme, the Hormuz Strait and the amount of frozen assets Tehran wants access to.The Iranian sources said most of the substantive exchanges in Islamabad were between Vance, Qalibaf and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi.’There were ups and downs. There were tense moments. People left the room, and then came back,’ the security source said.Pakistani representatives, including Army Chief Asim Munir, and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, moved between the sides through the night to keep things on track, five Pakistani sources said.'How can we trust you?'The talks stretched for more than 20 hours with on-duty hotel staff eating, sleeping and working on site after undergoing expedited background checks, they said.When discussions turned to guarantees, both non-aggression assurances and sanctions relief, the tone of the normally mild-mannered Araqchi grew sharper, the two Iranian sources said.The sources quoted him as saying: ‘How can we trust you when, in the last Geneva meeting, you said the US would not attack while diplomacy was under way?”The US-Israeli attack on Iran began two days after the two sides held a previous round of talks in Geneva.In addition to differences over Hormuz, sanctions and other topics, the two sides also disagreed over the scope of any deal. While Washington focused on the nuclear file and Hormuz, Tehran wanted a broader understanding, according to two of the sources.During one tense moment, raised voices could be heard outside the negotiating room before Munir and Dar called a tea break and moved the two sides back into separate rooms, the government source said. 'Our final and best offer'Toward the final stages of the discussions, which spilled into Sunday morning, the US delegates were moving between the negotiating room and their private floor far more often than the Iranians, the senior Pakistani official said.A US source said the vice president came to the talks with the aim of making a deal and reaching a mutual understanding. The US side has been wary of protracted negotiations with Iran, believing the Iranians are adept at delaying tactics and refusing to make concessions, the source said.Despite the deadlock, when Vance appeared in front of reporters later to announce the talks had ended, his remarks suggested more exchanges of some kind might be in prospect.’We leave here with a very simple proposal, a method of understanding that is our final and best offer,’ he said. ‘We'll see if the Iranians accept it.’ Source link
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland goes to his daughter (not pictured) while holding the Masters Trophy during the Green Jacket Ceremony after winning during the final…
US President Donald Trump’s attack on Pope Leo was “unacceptable”, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Monday, joining forces with politicians of all colours in springing to the Pontiff’s defence. The statement represented an extremely rare public rebuke of Trump from Meloni, who has cultivated particularly close ties with the US president, underscoring widespread anger in Italy over his broadside on Pope Leo. Trump set off the furore by calling Leo “terrible” in a long tirade on Sunday. He subsequently posted an artificial intelligence (AI) image depicting himself as a Messiah-like figure, sparking further outrage among Christians who saw the image. Meloni issued an initial statement backing Leo as he flew off on an ambitious four-nation visit to Africa, but made no specific mention of Trump’s broadside. Opposition politicians accused her of lacking the courage to directly challenge Trump, prompting her to issue a second statement later in the day to clarify her position. “I thought the meaning of my statement this morning was clear, but I will restate it more explicitly. I find President Trump’s words about the Holy Father unacceptable,” Meloni said. “The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and it is right and normal for him to call for peace and to condemn every form of war.” Meloni was the only European leader to attend Trump’s inauguration in 2025 and she had hoped their friendship would boost her standing at home and abroad. However, Trump risks becoming a liability, with 66% of Italians having a negative view of the US leader. Pollsters say that Meloni’s ties to the White House might have been a factor in her defeat last month in a referendum on judicial reform. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, who has also in the past associated himself closely with Trump, also distanced himself from the US leader Monday, highlighting how Europe’s far-right is trying to draw back from the MAGA (Make America Great Again) orbit. “Pope Leo is a spiritual leader for billions of Catholics, but beyond that, if there is one person striving for peace, it is Pope Leo, and so attacking him does not seem either wise or helpful,” he said in a statement. The Pope is the bishop of Rome and spiritual leader to millions of Italian Catholics, making politicians of all stripes wary about taking him on. “It has been centuries since such a blatant act of aggression against the Roman pontiff was seen,” said former centre-left prime minister Matteo Renzi, adding that it was vital for Catholics and non-believers alike to defend Leo. “He is, after all, a ‘builder of bridges,’ unlike Trump, a destroyer of relationships and of civilisation. The only advantage is this: Trumps come and go, popes remain,” he said. The comment echoed an Italian saying, “chi mangia papa crepa” which roughly means, “whoever tries to devour the pope dies” – a proverb born of centuries of tension between successive papacies and temporal rulers. “Trump has made the mistake of the century, because ‘chi mangia papa crepa’ has been borne out repeatedly,” said church historian Alberto Melloni, pointing to Italy’s royal family, the House of Savoy, which clashed repeatedly with the Vatican during the 19th century only to be swept away while the papacy lived on. Antonio Spadaro, a Roman Catholic priest and undersecretary of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Culture and Education, said Trump’s attack revealed his own weakness. “If Leo were irrelevant, he would not merit any comment. Instead, he is invoked, named, opposed – a sign that his words matter,” Spadaro wrote on X. “This is where the church’s moral force emerges. Not as a counter-power, but as a space in which power is judged by a standard it does not control.” Source link
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Firefighters work at the site of a building hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Monday. (Reuters) Two people were killed and one injured by Russian troops in Ukraine’s frontline eastern Donetsk region before the expiry of a ceasefire to mark Orthodox Easter, a local official said Monday. One person was killed in the city of Kramatorsk and one in Druzhkivka on Sunday, regional governor Vadym Filashkin said on the Telegram messaging app, without giving more details. Both Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of breaching the 32-hour ceasefire from Saturday afternoon to midnight on Sunday. Ukraine’s Co-ordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, citing a spokesperson of the 14th Army Corps, said Monday that during “the so-called ‘Easter ceasefire’” Russian servicemen also shot dead four Ukrainian prisoners of war in the Kharkiv region. It did not give more details, adding that Russia was preparing a campaign to deny it. There was no immediate comment from Russia and Reuters could not verify the information independently. The General Staff of Ukraine’s military said Monday it had compiled a total of 10,721 Russian violations over the course of the truce. It said the violations included 1,567 artillery shelling incidents, 119 assault operations and 9,035 strikes by attack drones. It said no air strikes had been recorded. The Russian defence ministry has said it recorded 1,971 ceasefire violations by Ukraine overnight into Sunday. Related Story…
Mexican archer Dafne Quintero poses with a bronze medal at the Stage 1 Archery World Cup, in Puebla, Mexico, April 11, 2026. REUTERS Mexico won three bronze medals in the first leg of the 2026 Archery World Cup in Puebla on Sunday, sending a clear message in the season’s opener: Los Angeles 2028 is their target.Over 200 archers from 32 countries competed in Stage 1 of the four-stage annual tournament in Mexico, battling in the recurve and compound divisions, with the host nation delivering on both fronts.The recurve women’s team – Alejandra Valencia, Ana Paula Vazquez and Angela Ruiz – took bronze against Spain, winning 6-2.”With this third place we have a good starting point ahead of the Olympics … It’s proof that we can achieve more, and that’s our goal as a team,” Vazquez told reporters on Sunday.Mexico’s other bronze winners were the compound women’s team of Andrea Becerra, Dafne Quintero and Ana Sofia Hernandez, who beat Turkey 233-230, and the compound men’s team of Sebastian Garcia, Juan Del Rio and Lot Maximo Mendez, who defeated Denmark 233-226.The compound mixed team event will make its Olympic debut at the LA28 Games, making every result between now and then count. On the individual stage, Mexico’s Matias Grande reached the men’s semifinals, where he fell to defending World Cup champion Brady Ellison of the U.S., then lost the bronze match to Turkey’s Mete Gazoz.In compound, Quintero similarly reached the final four before losing to Colombia’s Sara Lopez, then fell to another Colombian, Alejandra Usquiano, in the bronze match.The event itself was no small undertaking.Mexico stepped in to host after Central Florida lost its rights, with World Archery Mexico President Gabriel Ramos embracing the opportunity to showcase Puebla, navigating city authorities, logistics and the weight of expectation.”It was a challenge to convince all the authorities and to explain the size of this event,” Ramos told Reuters.The crowds, as ever in Mexico, rose to the occasion. “I believe this happens only in Mexico,” Ramos said, “to have people cheering not just for Mexicans – for the other countries.”With Mexico also staging the 20th anniversary World Cup Final in Saltillo and 60% of the national team hailing from Coahuila, that event in September promises to be something special. “It’s going to be a great celebration,” Ramos said.The longer goal is clear, he said. “We are a strong team, we want to be in LA, and we are building and working for that every day.” Source link
A fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran has done little to restore confidence in the vital maritime corridor, where renewed tensions – including a…