Overview
- Pope Leo XIV ended a weeklong Apostolic Journey to Spain on Friday in the Canary Islands with an open‑air Mass, visits to reception centres and meetings with migrants and aid workers.
- Speaking in Tenerife, he issued a direct moral warning to people smugglers to “Stop. Repent.” and said traffickers will answer to divine justice for organising deadly sea crossings.
- The pope used symbolic gestures to honour lives lost at sea, throwing a bouquet into the water and blessing a cross made from wrecked migrant boats to shame indifference and exploitation.
- His remarks came as the EU migration pact comes into force and after police and Europol actions dismantled trafficking networks, while the Canary route remains deadly with arrivals peaking at about 46,843 in 2024 and NGOs reporting thousands of deaths in recent years.
- The Vatican framed the visit as the start of a sustained migration focus for Leo’s papacy and announced a further symbolic stop in Lampedusa on July 4; the trip home was delayed when the papal plane suffered a technical fault and the pope returned to Rome aboard King Felipe VI’s jet.