From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, March 18, 2026
Top Vatican cardinal urges Trump, Israel to end war ‘as soon as possible’
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The Vatican’s top diplomat calls on US President Donald Trump to end the expanding Iran war as soon as possible and suggests Israel should also stop its strikes against Lebanon.
“I would say to finish it as soon as possible … and to leave alone Lebanon,” Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state and a senior advisor to Pope Leo XIV, says in an unusually direct appeal.
“This message also goes to the Israelis,” he adds, speaking to journalists at an event at the Italian parliament.
Vatican diplomats do not usually make direct appeals for action by foreign leaders, preferring to work behind the scenes. Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state since 2013, is known for speaking in muted tones and seeking to avoid the spotlight.
Leo, who is also known for speaking diplomatically, has been ramping up calls for an end to the Iran war in recent days.
On Monday, he urged journalists to highlight the suffering caused by war, cautioning against news reports that risk sliding into propaganda by glorifying conflicts.
Parolin says he is worried that the conflict will continue to escalate. He calls on Trump and other world leaders “to resolve problems … through the peaceful ways of diplomacy and dialogue.”
The Times of Israel Community.