Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has formally condemned US President Donald Trump’s criticism of Pope Leo XIV, calling it an unacceptable insult to religious leadership.
“I condemn the insult to Your Excellency on behalf of the great nation of Iran, and declare that the desecration of Jesus, the prophet of peace and brotherhood, is not acceptable to any free person,” Pezeshkian wrote in a message to the Pope posted on X. “I wish you glory by Allah.”
Mehdi Tabatabaei, the deputy for communications at Pezeshkian’s office, went further, comparing what he called the “character assassination” of the Pope to the assassination of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — killed in a US-Israeli airstrike earlier this year.
The intervention adds a new geopolitical layer to the Trump-Vatican standoff. Trump had called the American-born Pope “not a fan” and “terrible for foreign policy” after Leo denounced the US-led military campaign in Iran.
Pope Leo responded by telling reporters he had “no fear of the Trump administration” and would continue speaking about the Gospel and promoting peace.
Iran’s decision to publicly align itself with the Vatican against Trump comes as a fragile ceasefire and the US blockade of Iranian ports continue to dominate the Middle East crisis.
