Marking the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Pope Leo XIV has urged the world to reject war and embrace peace while remembering the victims of one of history’s most devastating events.

Speaking after the Sunday Angelus in St. Peter’s Square, the pontiff spoke on the horrors of nuclear warfare and the enduring suffering of survivors, known as hibakusha. “May those who make decisions always keep in mind their responsibility for the consequences of their choices on the people,” he said, emphasizing the “universal desire for peace” and the “needs of the weakest”.

Pope Leo expressed “respect and affection” for the survivors and called Hiroshima and Nagasaki “symbols of memory” while quoting his predecessor Pope Francis, he reiterated: “War is always a defeat.

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