Iran condemned President Trump’s insults to Pope Leo XIV on Monday, just moments before a U.S.-led controversial blockade of the Strait of Hormuz was set to kick off.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian took to social media to show his assist for the pontiff after Trump called him “weak” and “terrible” on crime and overseas coverage.

“Your Excellency Pope Leo XIV (@Pontifex), on behalf of the great nation of Iran, I condemn the insult to Your Excellency and declare that the desecration of Jesus (peace be upon him), the Prophet of peace and brotherhood, is unacceptable to any free person. I wish glory for you from Allah,” Pezeshkian wrote.

The president had beforehand shown his assist for the non secular chief, condemning Trump’s feedback, as properly as the desecration of Jesus.

“His Holiness Pope Leo XIV (@Pontifex), 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. I wish you glory by Allah,” the Iranian chief posted earlier on Monday.

President Trump and Pope Leo have clashed a number of instances in latest weeks, as the pontiff has denounced the battle in Iran, which began on Feb. 28 when the Trump administration launched joint assaults on Iran with Israel. Notably, during a Palm Sunday handle, the pope acknowledged that God “rejects” the prayers of those who wage battle and “does not listen” to leaders who invoke religion to justify battle.

On Sunday, Trump launched a scathing attack on Pope Leo, saying he does not assume historical past’s first American pope is “doing a very good job” and that “he’s a very liberal person,” while also suggesting that the pontiff ought to “stop catering to the Radical Left.”

“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” the president wrote in his post, including, “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon.”

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Trump repeated the sentiments to reporters as he headed to Florida, affirming, “we don’t like a pope who says it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon.”

The pope reported on the assaults on Monday, talking to reporters as he headed to Algeria for his longest yet worldwide journey. The pontiff said that his opposition to the battle was rooted in the Gospel, not political ideology, and that he doesn’t concern the Trump administration.

“To put my message on the same plane as what the president has attempted to do here, I think, is not understanding what the message of the Gospel is,” Leo said on a airplane to Algeria. “And I’m sorry to hear that, but I will continue on what I believe is the mission of the church in the world today.”

He added that his criticism of the battle was not a direct attack on Trump and the administration.

“I will not enter into debate. The things that I say are certainly not meant as attacks on anyone. The message of the Gospel is very clear: ‘Blessed are the peacemakers,’” Leo said.

“I will not shy away from announcing the message of the Gospel and inviting all people to look for ways of building bridges of peace and reconciliation, and looking for ways to avoid war any time that’s possible.”

Trump threatens to blockade Strait of Hormuz as peace talks with Iran fail

President Trump announced over the weekend plans for a blockade of the important waterway, saying the U.S. would block “any and all ships trying to enter or leave the Strait of Hormuz.”

“Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “At some point, we will reach an ‘ALL BEING ALLOWED TO GO IN, ALL BEING ALLOWED TO GO OUT’ basis, but Iran has not allowed that to happen by merely saying, ‘There may be a mine out there somewhere,’ that nobody knows about but them. THIS IS WORLD EXTORTION.”

Trump’s threats of a blockade had been rapidly met with opposition from key U.S. allies, including the U.Ok., which said it could not be concerned in the transfer and would instead focus on reopening the waterway “as quickly as possible,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer revealed during an interview.

The price of U.S. crude rose 8% to $104.24 a barrel following the weekend announcement of the blockade, and Brent crude, the worldwide benchmark, rose 7% to $102.29. By comparability, Brent crude value roughly $70 per barrel before the battle in late February.

Failed peace talks in Pakistan increase tensions in Iran battle

The U.S. and Iran ended a marathon spherical of face-to-face talks on Sunday without reaching an settlement on the destiny of the battle.

Vice President JD Vance, who led the U.S. delegation during the 21 hours of talks in Pakistan, said negotiations ended after Iran refused to settle for American phrases to chorus from developing a nuclear weapon.

“But the simple fact is that we need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon, and they will not seek the tools that would enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” Vance told reporters. “That is the core goal of the president of the United States. And that’s what we’ve tried to achieve through these negotiations.”

The Iranian delegation, however, didn’t immediately remark on those accusations. Meanwhile, Pakistan, which has been a fierce advocate of the ceasefire, called on both international locations to continue peace talks and the two-week settlement.

“It is imperative that the parties continue to uphold their commitment to ceasefire,” Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said, including that his nation will attempt to facilitate a new dialogue between Iran and the U.S. in the coming days.