STORY: Pope Leo said on Sunday (March 1) that he is following events after U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran with "deep concern" and made an impassioned appeal to stop what he called a "spiral of violence."

"Stability and peace are not built through mutual threats or through weapons ... but only through reasonable, genuine, and responsible dialogue," the pope said during his weekly address to pilgrims in St. Peter's Square after a Sunday prayer.

Speaking about ongoing clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces, he appealed for "an urgent resumption of dialogue".

He also remembered the victims and people displaced by the heavy rains that hit Brazil's southeastern state of Minas Gerais, in which at least 46 people have died according to figures released by the state fire department on Wednesday.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: VATICAN CITY (MARCH 1, 2026) (VATICAN MEDIA - Access all)

1. POPE LEO APPEARING FROM WINDOW OF APOSTOLIC PALACE

2. POPE GREETING CROWD IN ST. PETER'S SQUARE

3. PEOPLE IN SQUARE HOLDING FLAGS

4. (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) POPE LEO SAYING:

"I am following with deep concern what is happening in the Middle East and Iran at this dramatic time. Stability and peace cannot be built through mutual threats or with weapons that sow destruction, pain and death. They can only be achieved through reasonable, genuine and responsible dialogue. Faced with the possibility of a tragedy of enormous proportions, I address a heartfelt appeal to the parties involved to assume moral responsibility to stop the spiral of violence before it becomes an irreparable abyss”.

5. PEOPLE IN SQUARE APPLAUDING

6. (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) POPE LEO SAYING:

"May diplomacy regain its role and promote the good of peoples who yearn for peaceful coexistence based on justice, and let us continue to pray for peace. In recent days, there has also been worrying news of clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan. I appeal for an urgent resumption of dialogue. Let us pray together that harmony may prevail in all the conflicts in the world. Only peace, a gift from God, can heal the wounds between peoples"

7. NUNS PRAYING IN SQUARE

8. (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) POPE LEO SAYING: (PARTLY OVERLAID BY PEOPLE IN SQUARE):

"I am close to the people of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais affected by violent floods. I pray for the victims, for the families who have lost their homes and for those involved in the rescue operations"

9. PEOPLE IN SQUARE WAIVING BRAZILIAN FLAG

10. POPE WAVING AND LEAVING