Pope Leo XIV performs the Christmas mass at St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on December 25, 2025. (Photo by Tiziana Fabi / AFP)
Vatican City: Pope Leo XIV on Thursday condemned the "rubble and open wounds" left behind by wars, singling out the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza as he conducted his first Christmas homily.
"Fragile is the flesh of defenseless populations, tried by so many wars, ongoing or concluded, leaving behind rubble and open wounds," the pope said at the mass in St Peter's Basilica.
"How... can we not think of the tents in Gaza, exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold," he said.
