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Israeli Officials, Jewish Groups Congratulate New Pope Leo XIV
American cardinal Robert Prevost, now known as Leo XIV, has been elected a new pope by the cardinal electors on the second day of the conclave. On May 8, 2025, in Vatican City, Vatican. Photo: Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Reuters Connect
Israeli officials and Jewish groups offered congratulations on Thursday following the naming of the new leader of the Catholic Church, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who has taken the name Leo XIV.
The announcement from the Vatican was met with joyous celebration and surprise, with spectators noting Leo’s trailblazing status as the first ever pope from the United States. Individuals and organizations tied to both Israel and the Jewish community expressed hope that Leo would help foster positive relations between Jews and Christians.
Isaac Herzog, the [resident of Israel, posted a statement on X/Twitter, saying that he hopes to work alongside the pope to strengthen the friendship between Jews and Christians.
“We look forward to enhancing the relationship between Israel and the Holy See, and strengthening the friendship between Jews and Christians in the Holy Land and around the world,” Herzog wrote.
“May your papacy be one of building bridges and understanding between all faiths and peoples. May we see the immediate and safe return of the hostages still held in Gaza, and a new era of peace in our region and around the world,” Herzog continued.
The Israel Foreign Ministry also issued a congratulatory post on X/Twitter, saying that the organization hopes to forge a strong relationship with the new Catholic leader.
“We congratulate Cardinal Robert Prevost, Pope Leo XIV — the first American Pope — and Catholics around the world,” the ministry said. “We look forward to working together to further strengthen the relationship between the Jewish state and the Holy See. We hope to welcome you soon to the Holy Land.”
Jewish groups around the world expressed similarly optimistic sentiments about the new pope.
The American Jewish Committee (AJC), an organization that advocates on behalf of the Jewish community in the US, also acknowledged the naming of the new pope.
“We look forward to a close relationship with Pope Leo XIV as we continue to advance positive Catholic-Jewish relations for the benefit of Catholics, Jews, and all of humanity,” the AJC said.
The European Jewish Congress (EJC), an organization that advocates on behalf of the Jewish community within Europe, also expressed hope that the new pope would lead with “strength, wisdom, and compassion.”
“We extend our heartfelt wishes for strength, wisdom and compassion as he begins his mission as Supreme Pontiff,” the EJC added. “In an era that calls for moral leadership and unity across communities, we look forward to continuing and deepening the Catholic-Jewish dialogue, based on the Nostra Aetate declaration of 1965, rooted in mutual respect and shared values.”
The World Jewish Congress (WJC) similarly congratulated Leo.
“The WJC’s relationship with the Holy See spans decades and is grounded in a deep, ongoing commitment to interfaith dialogue. This partnership has centered on shared concerns such as the welfare of Jewish and Catholic communities, the fight against antisemitism and hatred, and the defense of religious freedom around the world,” WJC President Ronald Lauder said in a statement. “The WJC looks forward to continuing and deepening this essential dialogue under the leadership of Pope Leo XIV. At a time of global crisis, the importance of this relationship is only heightened.”
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also extended congratulations to the pope, expressing optimism that the new Catholic leader could foster “reconciliation among all faiths.”
“Congratulations to Pope Leo XIV and the Catholic community worldwide. I wish the first Pope from the United States success in fostering hope and reconciliation among all faiths,” Netanyahu said.
Leo XIV has not publicly expressed his views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or the ongoing war in Gaza. Relations between Israel and Leo XIV’s predecessor, Pope Francis, became increasingly tense in the months following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel, an attack that started the war in Gaza.
In December, Francis unveiled a nativity scene which featured a depiction of an infant Jesus wrapped in a keffiyeh — a traditional Arab headdress that has been repurposed after the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel to signal support for the anti-Israel activist movement. Some observers suggested that the scene in St. Peter’s Square — which was titled “Nativity of Bethlehem 2024” and designed by two artists from Bethlehem, Johny Andonia and Faten Nastas Mitwasi — effectively erased Jesus’s Jewish roots. Francis also accused Israel, without evidence, of inflicting a “famine” in Gaza and suggested that the Jewish state’s military tactics could be tantamount to a “genocide.”
The post Israeli Officials, Jewish Groups Congratulate New Pope Leo XIV first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Trump Is Lying When He Speaks of Peace
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with government officials in Tehran, Iran, April 15, 2025. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Donald Trump on Saturday of lying when the US president said during his Gulf tour this week that he wanted peace in the region.
On the contrary, said Khamenei, the United States uses its power to give “10-ton bombs to the Zionist (Israeli) regime to drop on the heads of Gaza’s children.”
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after departing the United Arab Emirates on Friday that Iran had to move quickly on a US proposal for its nuclear program or “something bad’s going to happen.”
His remarks, said Khamenei, “aren’t even worth responding to.” They are an “embarrassment to the speaker and the American people,” Khamenei added.
“Undoubtedly, the source of corruption, war, and conflict in this region is the Zionist regime — a dangerous, deadly cancerous tumor that must be uprooted; it will be uprooted,” he said at an event at a religious center in Tehran, according to state media.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Trump speaks about peace while simultaneously making threats.
“Which should we believe?” Pezeshkian said at a naval event in Tehran. “On the one hand, he speaks of peace and on the other, he threatens with the most advanced tools of mass killing.”
Tehran would continue Iran-US nuclear talks but is not afraid of threats. “We are not seeking war,” Pezeshkian said.
While Trump said on Friday that Iran had a US proposal about its nuclear program, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in a post on X said Tehran had not received any such proposal. “There is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to (uranium) enrichment for peaceful purposes…” he said.
Araqchi warned on Saturday that Washington’s constant change of stance prolongs nuclear talks, state TV reported.
“It is absolutely unacceptable that America repeatedly defines a new framework for negotiations that prolongs the process,” the broadcast quoted Araqchi as saying.
Pezeshkian said Iran would not “back down from our legitimate rights”.
“Because we refuse to bow to bullying, they say we are source of instability in the region,” he said.
A fourth round of Iran-U.S. talks ended in Oman last Sunday. A new round has not been scheduled yet.
The post Iran’s Supreme Leader Says Trump Is Lying When He Speaks of Peace first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Confirms New Gaza Ceasefire Talks with Israel in Qatar on Saturday
Doha, Qatar. Photo: StellarD via Wikimedia Commons.
A new round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel is underway in Qatar’s Doha, Hamas official Taher al-Nono told Reuters on Saturday.
He said the two sides were discussing all issues without “pre-conditions.”
Nono said Hamas was “keen to exert all the effort needed” to help mediators make the negotiations a success, adding there was “no certain offer on the table.”
The negotiations come despite Israel preparing to expand operations in the Gaza Strip as they seek “operational control” in some areas of the war-torn enclave.
The return to negotiations also comes after US President Donald Trump ended a Middle East tour on Friday with no apparent progress towards a new ceasefire, although he acknowledged Gaza’s growing hunger crisis and the need for aid deliveries.
The post Hamas Confirms New Gaza Ceasefire Talks with Israel in Qatar on Saturday first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: ICC’s Khan Goes on Administrative Leave Amid Sexual Misconduct Probe
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan speaks during an interview with Reuters in The Hague, Netherlands, Feb. 12, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
i24 News – Chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Khan has stepped down temporarily as an investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct by United Nations investigators is nearing its final phase, Reuters reported on Friday citing sources from the international court.
Khan allegedly forced sexual intercourse upon a member of staff on multiple occasions, the Wall Street Journal reported last week, linking the allegations to Khan’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant.
A statement is expected later today announcing that Khan is going on administrative leave, according to a source in the prosecutor’s office.
The post Report: ICC’s Khan Goes on Administrative Leave Amid Sexual Misconduct Probe first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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