Trump's quarrel with the Pope

Pope's new criticism: "They spend billions on killing"

Pope Leo XIV once again harshly criticizes world leaders who he believes, among other things, "spend billions on killing and destruction."

- The world is being destroyed by a handful of tyrants, he says during a speech in Cameroon.

The Pope has been in an open quarrel with Donald Trump for the past week, who has called the Pope "weak" and "lousy at foreign policy" after his criticism of the war in Iran.

- Woe to those who manipulate religion and God's own name for their own military, economic and political gain, those who drag what is holy down into darkness and filth, Leo continues.

Pope: Truth Social is an ironic name for the site

The Pope has visited four countries in Africa this week to spread a message of peace. However, it has been almost completely overshadowed by the ongoing conflict with the US president. This is what the AP writes, which followed the leader of the Catholic Church on his trip on the plane jokingly called “Shepherd One”.

“Every morning this week we have woken up to new statements from Washington and asked ourselves the question: Will Leo strike?” writes the AP correspondent.

In due course, the Pope also responded to the president in what has become a much-hyped statement.

On board the plane, however, he took few direct questions about the matter, writes the New York Times’ Motoko Rich, who was also on the trip.

She reports, however, that she finally got the Pope to make a brief comment about Trump’s recurring statements on the Truth Social platform.

“It’s ironic – the name of the site. I won’t say more,” said the Pope.

Donald Trump shares new photo – gets a hug from Jesus

Donald Trump has shared a new, apparently AI-generated, image of Jesus on social media.

An image in which Trump appeared to portray himself as Jesus sparked outrage among Christians in the US this week. After heavy criticism, the president deleted the post and claimed that the image depicted him as a doctor.

The new image doesn't go quite as far either. Here, Donald Trump is seen getting a hug from Jesus in front of an American flag.

"The radical left won't like this, but I think it's pretty cool," the president writes.

Trump's spat with the Pope— it's about the point

• Donald Trump this week launched a verbal attack on Pope Leo XIV after the latter criticized the US war in Iran.
• The president also shared an image in which he was portrayed as Jesus, which angered many American Christians.
• The conflict has led to concern within the Republican Party, as Catholic voters constitute a significant and mobile voter group ahead of the mid-term elections.
• Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has also entered the debate and criticized Trump's actions.
• US Vice President JD Vance, himself a Catholic, however, joined Trump's criticism and urged the Pope to "stick to moral issues".