War in the Middle East live Updates April 24, 2026, 9:01 a.m. ET U.S.-Iran Talks Israel-Lebanon Truce Strait of Hormuz Generals Running Iran Timeline of War Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. Supported by SKIP ADVERTISEMENT Pope Says News Outlets Misread Some of His Remarks as Criticism of Trump Pope Leo responded directly on Monday to a presidential attack. But since then, he said, some of his statements during his Africa trip have been misconstrued. Listen · 3:51 min Share full article Video Pope Leo Says News Outlets Misunderstood Recent Remarks as Trump Criticism Pope Leo XIV said that news outlets misinterpreted his recent remarks as criticism of President Trump. The pontiff has called for an end to the violence in the Middle East but told reporters on Saturday he had no interest in debating the president. Credit Credit… Patrick Meinhardt/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images By Motoko Rich Reporting from aboard the papal plane Published April 18, 2026 Updated April 19, 2026 Leer en español See more of our coverage in your search results. Encuentra más de nuestra cobertura en los resultados de búsqueda. Add The New York Times on Google Agrega The New York Times en Google In a brief but sharp denunciation of how news outlets have covered his Africa trip, Pope Leo XIV told reporters on Saturday that he had no interest in continuing a debate with President Trump and that some of his remarks had been misinterpreted as criticism of the president. On Monday, at the start of his 11-day trip to four African countries, the pope said he had “no fear” of Mr. Trump, responding to an extraordinary presidential broadside against him on social media. But since then, “there’s been a certain narrative that has not been accurate in all of its aspects,” the pope told journalists traveling on the papal plane from Cameroon to Angola on Saturday. “Because of the political situation created when, on the first day of the trip, the president of the United States made some comments about myself,” Pope Leo said, “much of what has been written since then has been more commentary on commentary trying to interpret what has been said.” The pope cited a speech he gave on Thursday in Bamenda, a city in a region of Cameroon where English-speaking separatists have clashed violently with the Francophone government for a decade. In those remarks, he said “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” — remarks that many in the media, including The New York Times , interpreted as referring not just to the conflict in Cameroon but to the Trump administration. But Leo said Saturday that speech “was prepared two weeks ago, well before the president ever commented on myself and on the message of peace that I am promoting.” We are having trouble retrieving the article content. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in . Want all of The Times? Subscribe . Related Content Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT