Pope Leo excoriates 'tyrants' waging war instead of peace

As Pope Leo XIV continues his Africa tour, he has remained steadfast in his condemnation of war.

On Thursday, the head of the Roman Catholic Church renewed his message of peace in Cameroon, presiding over a meeting designed to foster dialogue in a place that has been experiencing simmering violence for nearly a decade.

Speaking at Saint Joseph's Cathedral in the city of Bamenda, where cheering crowds lined the streets to welcome him, Leo blasted a "handful of tyrants" whom he said are spending billions to "ravage" the world through exploitation and war.

The pontiff's words have taken on new meaning of late as US President Donald Trump continues to lash out at him publicly over the pope's criticism of war in general and Trump' Iran war specifically.

'Blessed are the peacemakers' says Leo, 'woe to those who manipulate religion'

At Thursday's peace meeting, attended by a Mankon tribal chief, a Presbyterian moderator, a Muslim imam and a Catholic nun, Leo said, "The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants, yet it is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters!"

"Blessed are the peacemakers," said Leo, "But woe to 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."

"It is a world turned upside down, an exploitation of God's creation that must be denounced and rejected by every honest conscience."

"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," said Leo in Bamenda, the epicenter of a conflict between government forces and English-speaking separatists.

Those words, too, will have registered in Washington, where the Pentagon — specifically Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth — has sought to brand operations in Iran as a "holy war."

Cameroon's conflict dates back to division of spoils after WWI

Cameroon, which was divided between the French and the British after the end of World War I, possesses major oil, natural gas, bauxite, cobalt, iron ore, gold and diamond reserves.

In 1961, English speakers voted to join French Cameroon but they have since expressed frustration over their political and economical marginalization in the central African country.

Cameroon's two Anglophone regions have endured great violence in the wake of attempts to split from the largely Francophone nation in recent years.

The current conflict erupted when President Paul Biya, in power since 1982, violently crushed peaceful demonstrations by English-speaking citizens back in 2016.

More than 6,000 civilians have been killed in fighting since 2016, and over 600,000 displaced. Kidnapping and extortion are rampant as well.

Archbishop of Bamenda Andrew Nkea Fuanya told Leo that people in the region have been tormented by "a situation they did not create," adding, "Most Holy Father, today your feet are standing on the soil of Bamenda that has drunk the blood of many of our children."

Edited by: Wesley Dockery