{"id":134773,"date":"2026-06-25T11:23:32","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T17:23:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/pope-leo-xiv-warns-wars-are-fed-faster-than-people-as-aid-money-dries-up\/"},"modified":"2026-06-25T11:23:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T17:23:32","slug":"pope-leo-xiv-warns-wars-are-fed-faster-than-people-as-aid-money-dries-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/pope-leo-xiv-warns-wars-are-fed-faster-than-people-as-aid-money-dries-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope Leo XIV warns wars are \u2018fed\u2019 faster than people as aid money dries up"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Pope
Pope Leo XIV speaks during a meeting with the employees of the United Nations World Food Programme in Rome on Mondday, June 22, 2026. (Alessandra Taratino\/Associate Press)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Addressing the governing body of the U.N. World Food Program in Rome, Leo pressed governments to cut red tape and tear down obstacles that prevent assistance from reaching those in need.<\/p>\n

Echoing a warning first voiced by late Pope Francis during a WFP visit a decade ago, Leo criticized political and administrative barriers that slow humanitarian aid while military spending continues unhindered.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhereas forms of aid and development projects are obstructed by involved and incomprehensible political decisions, skewed ideological visions and impenetrable customs barriers, weaponry is not,\u201d he said. \u201cIn effect, conflicts are \u2018fed\u2019 more readily than people are nourished.\u201d<\/p>\n

The appeal comes as funding for food assistance has dropped sharply \u2013 by about 59% since 2022 \u2013 even as needs have surged, according to a recent WFP report.<\/p>\n

There was some positive news on funding last week, with the United States pledging $800 million to the WFP. The agency said the contribution will help more than 38 million people in at least 37 countries at a time of unprecedented global need.<\/p>\n

Still, the WFP\u2019s more than $10 billion appeal for 2026 remains severely underfunded.<\/p>\n

For years, the U.S. Agency for International Development was the backbone of humanitarian aid worldwide. But last year, the Trump administration abolished the agency, cutting $60 billion in overall assistance. Under a reset in December, the U.S. has restored funding to the WFP and announced $218 million in assistance to UNICEF.<\/p>\n

Leo warned that today\u2019s crises \u2013 from conflict to climate and economic strain \u2013 have become \u201cpersistent realities,\u201d arguing that the global system is no longer simply failing but reproducing the conditions behind hunger.<\/p>\n

He described a fractured international order marked by mistrust, with countries prioritizing national interests over cooperation even as hunger fuels instability, migration and conflict.<\/p>\n

Warning that the stakes go beyond humanitarian relief, the pope urged leaders to place human dignity at the center of decision-making.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery human person possesses an inherent and inalienable dignity that remains intact regardless of circumstance, condition or social status,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pope Leo XIV speaks during a meeting with the employees of the United Nations World Food Programme in Rome on Mondday, June 22, 2026. (Alessandra Taratino\/Associate Press) Addressing the governing body of the U.N. World Food Program in Rome, Leo pressed governments to cut red tape and tear down obstacles that prevent assistance from reaching […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":134774,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6430],"tags":[2423,407],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-134773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-religion","tag-pope","tag-religion-and-belief"],"acf":[],"author_name":"Website Administrator","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134773"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134773\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134773"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=134773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}