In a Christmas message delivered later in the holiday season, the pope, whose papacy has prominently featured advocacy for immigrants, expressed deep concern for migrants and refugees making arduous journeys across the Americas.

Pope Leo, known for his past critiques of U.S. President Donald Trump’s stringent immigration policies, did not directly mention Trump this time. However, during a Christmas Eve sermon, he emphasized that neglecting the needy and strangers is equivalent to turning away from God.

The pope has voiced his sorrow over the plight of Palestinians in Gaza on several occasions recently. Last month, he informed journalists that the resolution to the long-standing conflict must involve the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Amid the ruins, displaced Palestinians find themselves living in temporary shelters within the al Maghazi refugee camp located in central Gaza. Source: Anadolu, Getty / Moiz Salhi

In October, Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire after two years marked by intense Israeli airstrikes and military actions, following a deadly assault by Hamas-affiliated fighters on Israeli communities in October 2023. Despite the truce, humanitarian organizations report that Gaza continues to suffer from a severe shortage of aid, leaving nearly the entire population without homes.

“The frailty of defenseless populations, tested by numerous wars—whether ongoing or concluded—remains evident in the rubble and wounds left behind,” the pope noted.

“Fragile are the minds and lives of young people forced to take up arms, who on the front lines feel the senselessness of what is asked of them and the falsehoods that fill the pompous speeches of those who send them to their deaths,” Leo said.

Calls for an end to conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan, Mali

In an appeal during the “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) message and blessing given by the pope at Christmas and Easter, Leo called for an end to all global wars.

Speaking from the central balcony of St Peter’s Basilica to thousands of people in the square below, he lamented conflicts, political, social or military, in Ukraine, Sudan, Mali, Myanmar, and Thailand and Cambodia, among others.

Leo said people in Ukraine have been “tormented” by violence.

“May the clamour of weapons cease, and may the parties involved, with the support and commitment of the international community, find the courage to engage in sincere, direct and respectful dialogue.”

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