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Pope Leo has seemingly taken a jab at President Donald Trump as he said God ignores the prayers of leaders who wage war and have their "hands full of blood".
On Sunday, March 29, the pontiff made the comments as thousands of US troops arrived in the Middle East.
During a Palm Sunday mass in St Peter's Square, the pope said the conflict between Iran, the US and Israel was "atrocious".
"This is our God: Jesus, king of peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war," he told tens of thousands of worshippers. "He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them."
Quoting a Bible passage, Leo continued, "'Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood.'"
The US pope did not mention any of the countries or individuals; however, the remarks followed Pete Hegseth's prayer for violence on Wednesday.
Moreover, this comes as the Pentagon has shared that over 3,000 personnel have arrived in the Middle East, while the Iranian parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said that the Iran's forces were waiting for US troops to "set them on fire".
The pope has repeatedly called for a ceasefire and a ban on airstrikes in a conflict that has engulfed Lebanon, Israel and multiple Gulf states.
On Sunday morning, Israeli police prevented Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, an archbishop with Catholic jurisdiction across Israel and the Palestinian territories, from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem to conduct mass.
Italy's prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, called the incident "an offence not only to the faithful but to any community that respects religious freedom".
For the unversed, Palm Sunday is the start of a holy week for Christians, marking Christ's arrival in Jerusalem days before his crucifixion and resurrection.
