Trump hits out at Pope Leo after he condemns 'military action', insisting Pontiff 'wouldn't be in the Vatican' without him
Donald Trump has hit out at Pope Leo insisting he "wouldn't be in the Vatican" without him after the Pontiff appeared to condemn the President's "military action" in Iran.
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Taking aim at the US-born Pope on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump was seen to admit: "I'm not a fan of Pope Leo".
It comes after he accused the Pontiff of being "weak on crime", without citing any evidence to back up his claims.
The US President was then seen to post an AI-generated image appearing to depict himself as God.
As part of the rant, the US President criticised the Pontiff over his views on US actions in Iran - and after the religious leader spoke out following US actions in Venezuela.
On Friday, Pope Leo appeared to condemn US military actions in the Middle East, writing: "God does not bless any conflict" - an apparent swipe at Trump.
Releasing a statement on X, the Pontiff stated that "no cause can justify the shedding of innocent blood".
He did not name the US leader or the country itself directly, but did reference the "inhuman violence is spreading ferociously through the sacred places of the Christian East".
During his online rant, Trump went on to claim that the head of the Catholic faith had only been appointed because of his American nationality.
"If I wasn't in the White House, Leo wouldn't be in the Vatican," he wrote.
Trump branded the Pope "a man that doesn't think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon so they can blow up the world."
He added: "I'm not a fan of Pope Leo."
The apparent disagreement is posing a potential religious rift among Trump's hardline Christian fanbase in the United States.
It comes after the Pentagon and the Vatican both appeared to deny allegations of a rift last week, following a reported contentious meeting between a papal envoy and a top US defence official.
It is not the first time Pope Leo XIV, the first US-born pontiff, has criticised the US president over the war on Iran.
In January, he denounced what he called "diplomacy based on force" and in his Easter blessing he urged "those who have the power to unleash wars" to "choose peace."