Pope Condemns Iran’s Use of Death Penalty Against Protesters 

January 09, 2023 7:42 AM

Pope Francis poses for pictures on the day of his "State of the World" address to diplomats, at the Vatican, Jan. 9, 2023. (Vatican Media/­Handout via Reuters)
Pope Francis poses for pictures on the day of his "State of the World" address to diplomats, at the Vatican, Jan. 9, 2023. (Vatican Media/­Handout via Reuters)

Pope Francis condemned Iran’s execution of protesters for the first time on Monday in his traditional New Year’s address to diplomats, and said the war in Ukraine was "a crime against God and humanity."

The pontiff made his remarks in a speech to diplomats accredited to the Vatican, his overview at the start of the new year which has come to be known informally as his "state of the world" address.

His eight-page speech in Italian, read to representatives of most of the 183 countries accredited to the Vatican, ran the gamut of all the world’s conflict areas, including those in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

He repeated his condemnation of abortion, appealing "particularly to those having political responsibilities, to strive to safeguard the rights of those who are weakest," and he again warned of threat of a nuclear conflict.

However, the main novelty of the speech in the Vatican’s Hall of Benedictions was his breaking of silence on the nationwide unrest in Iran since the death last September of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini in police custody.