Pope Leo XIV has called for "deep reflection" on the treatment of migrants in the US, where he said many people were deeply affected by the controversial mass deportation policy, the BBC reported, BTA reported.
In one of his strongest criticisms yet of President Donald Trump's administration, the first US-born pope also warned that US bombing of Venezuelan ships suspected of carrying drugs risked increasing tensions in the region.
Stepping out to address television cameras outside his papal residence in Castel Gandolfo and offering to answer "one or two questions", Pope Leo XIV said there were people who had lived in the US "for years, without ever causing any problems, and who were deeply affected" by Trump's tough immigration policies.
Speaking in English and addressing an American audience directly, he reiterated the Catholic belief that every Christian will ultimately be judged by how they welcome the "foreigner".
Initially, after his election in May, Leo XIV's comments on geopolitics were cautious. Then last month he used the word "inhuman" in reference to Trump's crackdown, the BBC recalls.