En una fase clave en la guerra de Medio Oriente, Donald Trump y el papa León XIV fueron protagonistas de un fuerte cruce. El presidente de Estados Unidos calificó al sumo pontífice como “débil” y él le respondió: “No le tengo miedo”.

Los cruces comenzaron luego de que León XIV criticara abiertamente la amenaza del mandatario estadounidense acerca de acabar con “toda una civilización” en el conflicto con Irán: aunque sin nombrarlo, el papa la calificó como “inaceptable” y animó a los fieles a “comunicarse” con los congresistas para pedir paz.

En esta primera Semana Santa como pontífice, también denunció en sus homilías “la hora oscura” que vive el mundo por la guerra, lamentado “una humanidad de rodillas por tantos ejemplos de brutalidad” o tachado de “blasfemos” a los gobernantes que “quieren vencer matando” o “se perciben poderosos cuando dominan”.

El papa León XIV también afirmó que “Dios no bendice ningún conflicto”, y quienes son “discípulos de Cristo”, no están nunca de lado “de quienes ayer empuñaban la espada y hoy lanzan bombas”, al recibir en el Vaticano a los miembros del Sínodo de la Iglesia Caldea de Bagdad.

Las críticas de Trump al papa León XIV

“El papa León es débil en materia de delincuencia y pésimo en política exterior. Habla del ‘miedo’ a la administración Trump, pero no menciona el miedo que la Iglesia Católica y todas las demás organizaciones cristianas sintieron durante la pandemia, cuando arrestaban a sacerdotes, ministros y a todo el mundo por celebrar misas, incluso al aire libre y manteniendo la distancia de seguridad”, expresó a través de Truth Social.

De la misma forma, aseguró que le cae mejor su hermano Louis porque es un “auténtico seguidor de MAGA”. “¡Él lo entiende, y León no! No quiero un papa que piense que está bien que Irán tenga armas nucleares. No quiero un papa que piense que es terrible que Estados Unidos atacara a Venezuela, un país que enviaba enormes cantidades de drogas a Estados Unidos y, peor aún, que liberaba a asesinos, narcotraficantes y criminales en nuestro país», insistió.

En el mismo sentido, aseguró que no quiere un papa que “critique al Presidente de los Estados Unidos”. “Estoy haciendo exactamente lo que me eligieron, por una aplastante mayoría, estableciendo cifras récord de delincuencia y creando el mejor mercado de valores de la historia”, señaló.

A la par, Trump sostuvo que su triunfo en las elecciones influenció la elección del sacerdote en el Cónclave. “León debería estar agradecido porque, como todos saben, fue una sorpresa mayúscula. No estaba en ninguna lista para ser papa, y la Iglesia lo puso allí solo porque era estadounidense, y pensaron que esa sería la mejor manera de lidiar con el Presidente Donald J. Trump. Si yo no estuviera en la Casa Blanca, León no estaría en el Vaticano”, declaró.

“Desafortunadamente, la debilidad de León contra el crimen y contra las armas nucleares no me convence, ni tampoco el hecho de que se reúna con simpatizantes de Obama como David Axelrod, un perdedor de la izquierda, que es uno de los que querían que arrestaran a feligreses y clérigos. Debería enmendar su papel como papa, usar el sentido común, dejar de complacer a la izquierda radical y concentrarse en ser un gran papa, no un político. ¡Le está haciendo mucho daño y, lo que es más importante, le está haciendo daño a la Iglesia Católica!“, completó.

La respuesta del papa León XIV

Luego de las críticas del republicano, el sumo pontífice le respondió mientras estaba a bordo del avión papal durante el vuelo hacia Argelia, donde comenzó este lunes su tercer viaje internacional. “No, no le tengo miedo a la administración Trump, ni a proclamar el mensaje del Evangelio en voz alta, que es para lo que creo que debo estar aquí, y por eso está aquí la Iglesia. No somos políticos, no vemos la política exterior desde la misma perspectiva, sino como constructores de paz”, dijo.

En el mismo sentido, sostuvo que no cree que el mensaje del Evangelio deba ser tergiversado “como algunos lo están haciendo” y aseguró que seguirá manifestándome enérgicamente contra la guerra, “tratando de promover la paz, el diálogo y el multilateralismo con los estados para buscar soluciones a los problemas”. “Demasiadas personas sufren hoy, demasiadas personas inocentes han muerto, y creo que alguien debe alzar la voz”, insistió.

De esta manera, León XIV afirmó: “Las cosas que yo digo no tienen por qué ser entendidas como un ataque a nadie. El mensaje del evangelio es muy claro: Bienaventurados los que construyen la paz”, agregó. Y señaló: “Esto es lo que creo que tengo que hacer, lo que la Iglesia tiene que hacer. No somos políticos, no nos ocupamos de política internacional con la misma perspectiva que él (Trump) pueda tener. Yo creo en el mensaje del evangelio que es el del construir la paz».

En el cierre, el sumo pontífice dijo que él solo está invitando “a todos para buscar la manera de construir puentes de paz y reconciliación, de buscar modos de evitar guerra siempre que se pueda”. “Creo que el presidente no está entendiendo lo que es el mensaje del evangelio”, aseveró y aclaró que siente “mucho” las palabras que le dirigió a Trump, pero que de igual manera seguirá con su misión. Incluso bromeó cuando le preguntaron sobre el post en Truth Social, la plataforma de Trump: “Ya es irónico el nombre del sitio web por no decir más…”

China said Sunday it would resume some ties it had suspended with Taiwan such as direct flights and imports of Taiwanese aquaculture products following a visit by the Beijing-friendly opposition leader of the self-ruled island.

The Taiwan Work Office under China’s Communist Party issued a statement saying it would explore setting up a longstanding communication mechanism between the Communist Party and Taiwan’s Kuomingtang Party. It said it will facilitate the import of Taiwan’s aquaculture products that it had previously banned.

Cheng Li-wun, the head of the Kuomingtang, and China’s President Xi Jinping held a high-profile meeting Friday during which they called for peace, without offering specifics. China claims the island as part of its territory and hasn’t ruled out the use of force to annex it.

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, which oversees the relationship with China, said the measures that were announced, such as promoting a communication mechanism, were «political transactions» between the two parties that circumvented the government of Taiwan.

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«The government’s position is clear: to ensure the interests of the nation and its people, all Cross-Strait affairs involving public power must be negotiated by both governments on an equal and dignified basis to be effective and truly protect the rights and well-being of the people,» the Mainland Affairs Council said in response to the Chinese announcement.

Relations between China and Taiwan, which remain split since 1949, have been tense since the election of pro-independence President Tsai Ing-wen from the Democratic Progressive Party in 2016. Beijing cut off most of its official dialogue with Taiwan’s government, and has started sending warships and fighter jets closer toward the island on a daily basis.

BIPARTISAN HOUSE CHINA PANEL SLAMS BEIJING’S TAIWAN DRILLS AS ‘DELIBERATE ESCALATION’

XI Jinping meets with a delegation of the Kuomintang in Beijing, China, on April 10, 2026. Taiwan pushed back after China announced new cross-strait measures following Xi Jinping’s meeting with the Beijing-friendly opposition leader. (Li Xiang/Xinhua via Getty Images)

In the statement, China said it plans to resume direct flights between Taiwan and mainland cities like Xi’an or Urumqi, although it remained unclear how the measures will be implemented without the approval of the Taiwanese government.

China banned its citizens from individual trips to Taiwan in 2019. Taiwan’s rules now require Chinese visitors to hold a valid resident visa from another country, like the U.S. or the European Union, to apply for a visitor visa.

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Xi Jinping speaks during a meeting with Taiwan’s opposition leader Cheng Li-wun at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Friday, April 10, 2026. China is offering limited trade and travel openings to Taiwan while continuing to press its territorial claim over the self-ruled island. (Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via AP)

China also said it would work toward construction of a bridge that would connect the mainland to Matsu and Kinmen, Taiwanese islands that are closer geographically to China. The project is a longstanding proposal that Beijing has previously announced.

China banned the import of Taiwanese pineapples in 2021, and since then has extended it to other fruits and products including the grouper fish, squid and tuna.

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After the initial ban on grouper, Taiwan’s Ministry of Agriculture said it approached China about making adjustments to ensure it met import requirements. China replied with a limited list of individual companies that were allowed to sell to China, but without explanation.

First lady Melania Trump’s call for public hearings for Jeffrey Epstein’s victims is piling fresh pressure on Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who only days earlier signaled the administration wanted to move past the saga even as bipartisan lawmakers and survivors continue demanding more files, testimony and prosecutions.

While the first lady called on Congress to take additional steps to let Epstein «survivors» tell their stories, Epstein victims and members of Congress themselves argued that the onus is with the Trump administration, not Congress. 

«First Lady asks Congress to bring Epstein survivors in for testimony. With all due respect, that’s Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche’s job!» Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who has been at odds with the president and his administration over how it has handled the Epstein case, said after the first lady’s remarks. «Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and I already gave brave survivors a chance to tell their horrific stories on Capitol Hill. Pam Bondi wouldn’t even acknowledge them. PROSECUTE!»

«Actually, Congress did act,» added Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., in response to the First Lady’s Thursday night remarks calling on Congress to do more. «But Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche is violating the law and refusing to release the Epstein files as required by law.»

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Meanwhile, in a letter released by over a dozen alleged Epstein victims, survivors also put pressure on the Justice Department to do more.

«First Lady Melania Trump is now shifting the burden onto survivors under politicized conditions that protect those with power: the Department of Justice, law enforcement, prosecutors, and the Trump administration, which has still not fully complied with the Epstein Files Transparency Act,» a letter allegedly signed by 15 Epstein victims, posted to social media by Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., stated. «It also diverts attention from Pam Bondi, who must answer for withheld files and the exposure of survivors’ identities. Those failures continue to put lives at risk while shielding enablers.»

«Survivors have done their part. Now it’s time for those in power to do theirs,» the letter concluded.

MELANIA TRUMP’S FORCEFUL EPSTEIN DENIAL DRAWS BIPARTISAN SUPPORT FROM LAWMAKERS

Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Justice and White House for comment on the first lady’s remarks and remarks from victims and members of Congress calling on the Trump administration to do more, but did not hear back. 

However, in a statement to NPR following the first lady’s remarks, the Department of Justice said: «As we have always stated, we encourage any victims of Jeffrey Epstein — who wish to speak — to contact the FBI. Any survivor who has information on an abuser is encouraged to contact federal law enforcement.»

Not long after taking the reins from former U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Blanche insisted it was time for the Justice Department to move on from the Epstein case. 

«I think that to the extent that the Epstein files was a part of the past year of this Justice Department, it … should not be a part of anything going forward,» Blanche said Thursday in an interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters. He added that the DOJ «has now released all the files with respect to the Epstein saga.»

The Justice Department charged three individuals in connection with an alleged scheme to illegally export U.S. AI technology to China, officials said on March 19. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Still, several members of Congress think there is more to be done on the matter. 

Following the first lady’s remarks, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., indicated that House Oversight chairman, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., agreed to call four named co-conspirators to testify. 

«And they won’t be the only ones,» the congresswoman added in a post on X. 

«There are a number of doctors we also have questions for, and the list continues to grow,» the Florida congresswoman continued. «I am calling on the DOJ to prosecute individuals who took plea deals under civil rights violations, and to consider additional charges where appropriate. If you traffic a young girl(s), you don’t get to pretend to be a victim. There is a massive difference.»

First lady Melania Trump (left) pictured next to Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche (right). (Getty Images)

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Meanwhile, Khanna also demanded the first lady come testify in front of Congress, arguing her remarks show she is privy to «relevant» information, while Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., said following the first lady’s Thursday night remarks that he and his colleagues still want to see Bondi testify to Congress. 

«Pam Bondi knows more about this cover-up and why the botched release of the files happened the way they did in doxxing survivors and putting their information out there, not protecting their identities. Pam Bondi must testify, that is her legal obligation.»

«I think there’s enough Republicans that also agree — she has been subpoenaed — they had a legal subpoena,» Garcia told CNN. «The DOJ and Todd Blanche continue to cover up for Donald Trump, continue to want this to go away, but we are going to continue to push every single day.»