Pope Leo XIV

"This is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war," Pope Leo, the first US pope, told crowds.

As the pope urges restraint and condemns war, Israelis facing daily threats question whether such moral clarity reflects the realities on the ground.

Dayan and the Pope discussed potential collaborations between the Vatican and Yad Vashem regarding Holocaust commemoration, documentation, and education.

Pope Leo also addressed the situation in Lebanon, ravaged by a war between Israel and the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah, which was also a cause of "great concern."

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday that the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and members of his family was a "cynical" murder.

Before sprinkling ashes on the heads of participants, a sign of mortality, the pope said the ashes could represent "the weight of a world that is ablaze, of entire cities destroyed by war."

"On this annual occasion of painful remembrance, I ask the Almighty for the gift of a world with no more antisemitism," Pope Leo said.

Leo, the first US pope, said the weakness of international organizations in the face of global conflicts was "a particular cause for concern."

The Jerusalem Post's must-listen news roundup with Shifra Jacobs—the top stories, clear and concise. 

Leo, the first US pope, said the story of Jesus being born in a stable showed that God had "pitched his fragile tent" among the people of the world.