Leo and "the tyrants": Does new pope's defiant message resonate? • FRANCE 24 English

A new U-S-born Pope on a first-ever visit to Cameroon’s restive English-speaking northwest, and who’s not turning the other cheek: “Blessed are the peacemakers! But woe to those who manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic and political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth.”, Pope Leo declared on Thursday in Bamenda.The message was the same when he landed Wednesday in Yaoundé and while it may sound like a rebuttal to a critical U-S president who’s an ocean away, it's first a pointed message to the leader in the room hosting Leo… 93-year old Paul Biya, only the second head of state Cameroon’s known since independence from France in 1960.  We’ll ask our panel what makes the Bamenda leg of the Pope’s four-nation tour of Africa historic, about the separatist rebels who called a four-day truce during the visit, and how the Church can help in a nation where half the population's under 18 and whose politics can feel like a ticking time bomb, what with zero visibility surrounding Biya’s succession.


🔔 Subscribe to France 24 now: https://f24.my/YTen
🔴 LIVE - Watch FRANCE 24 English 24/7 here: https://f24.my/YTliveEN

🌍 Read the latest International News and Top Stories: https://www.france24.com/en/

Like us on Facebook: https://f24.my/FBen
Follow us on X: https://f24.my/Xen
Bluesky: https://f24.my/BSen and Threads: https://f24.my/THen
Browse the news in pictures on Instagram: https://f24.my/IGen
Discover our TikTok videos: https://f24.my/TKen
Get the latest top stories on Telegram: https://f24.my/TGen