Pope Leo blasted leaders who spend billions on wars in unusually forceful remarks in Cameroon on Thursday (April 16) after U.S. President Donald Trump attacked him again on social media.

Leo, the first U.S. pope, also decried leaders who used religious language to justify wars and urged a "decisive change of course" in a meeting in the biggest city in Cameroon's anglophone regions, where a simmering conflict going back nearly a decade has left thousands dead.

"The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is not enough to rebuild," the pontiff said.

"They turn a blind eye to the fact that billions of dollars are spent on killing and devastation, yet the resources needed for healing, education and restoration are nowhere to be found."

Trump's attacks on Leo, first launched on the eve of the pope's ambitious four-country tour of Africa and repeated late Tuesday (April 14), have caused dismay in Africa, where more than a fifth of the world's Catholics live.

Leo, who kept a relatively low profile for most of his first year as leader of the 1.4-billion-member Church, has emerged as an outspoken critic of the war that began with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

POPE LEO ADDRESSING CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY DURING HIS VISIT TO CAMEROON / POPE LEO SAYING WORLD LEADERS SPENDING BILLIONS ON 'KILLING AND DEVASTATION'

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: AUDIO QUALITY AS INCOMING

EDITORS PLEASE SEE ALSO EDIT 2964-POPE-AFRICA/BAMENDA

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: BAMENDA, CAMEROON (APRIL 16, 2026) (VATICAN MEDIA - Access All)

1. POPE LEO DELIVERING A SPEECH TO CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY

2. (SOUNDBITE) (English) POPE LEO, SAYING:

"The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is not enough to rebuild. They turn a blind eye to the fact that billions of dollars are spent on killing and devastation, yet the resources needed for healing, education and restoration are nowhere to be found."

3. POPE LEO SPEAKING

4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) POPE LEO, SAYING:

"Those who rob your land of its resources generally invest much of the profit in weapons, thus perpetuating an endless cycle of destabilization and death. It is a world turned upside down, an exploitation of God’s creation that must be denounced and rejected by every honest conscience. We must make a decisive change of course, a true conversion, that will lead us in the opposite direction, onto a sustainable path rich in human fraternity."

5. POPE LEO SPEAKING

6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) POPE LEO, SAYING:

"Jesus told us, 'Blessed are the peacemakers'. But 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. Yes, my dear brothers and sisters, you who hunger and thirst for justice, who are poor, merciful, meek, and pure of heart, you who have wept, you are the light of the world!"

7. POPE LEO SPEAKING