Pope condemns killing of protesters in Iran, reaffirms stance against war

Pope Leo on Thursday (April 23) firmly condemned the killing of protesters in Iran, after U.S. President Donald Trump had criticised the Catholic leader last week for not doing so while speaking out against the U.S.-Israel led war.

Leo, the first U.S. pope, also decried the deaths of "so many" civilians in the war and lamented the collapse of planned U.S.-Iran peace talks in comments aboard his return flight to Rome after a four-nation Africa tour.

"I condemn all actions that are unjust. I condemn the taking of people's lives," the pope said in response to a question in a press conference about reports that Iran has killed thousands of protestors.

Leo was attacked by Trump on social media as "terrible" on April 12, after the pope emerged as an outspoken critic of the Iran war and the president's hard-line anti-immigration policies.

In a post two days later, Trump asked if "will someone please tell Pope Leo" about the deaths of Iranian protestors.

In Leo's comments on the papal flight, he also signalled that he does not plan to go beyond efforts made by his predecessor Pope Francis to offer Church blessings for same-sex couples, saying taking new steps could cause disunity in Catholicism.

-Yesim Dikmen, Antonio Denti/Reuters