Pope Leo XIV received the prime minister of the Republic of Sudan, Kamil Idris, in an audience on Monday, May 11. The Sudanese leader then met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state. His visit to Rome was part of an effort to break his country's isolation on the international stage, three years after the outbreak of a civil war that has sparked one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century.
The UN's World Food Program calls the Sudan disaster the biggest in the world because it involves nearly 34 million people – 65% of the population – who need urgent humanitarian assistance. Comparatively, this number means that more than the entire US state of Texas is facing dire need.
Sudan is also the world’s biggest displacement crisis with more than 11.5 million people forced from their homes by the conflict.
The Holy See Press Office published a press release noting that discussions between the Sudanese leader and Secretariat of State officials emphasized "the significant contribution of the local Church to the good of the country." Above all, both parties addressed "the severe crisis that has been plaguing war-torn Sudan for the last three years."
They reiterated "the urgent need to achieve a ceasefire, provide assistance to the population and initiate a sincere dialogue among all parties of the Sudanese nation" with the goal of "ending the conflict and collectively establishing peace."
This statement, which was more detailed than usual for visits by international leaders to the Vatican, comes as Sudan endures this ongoing humanitarian crisis.
Pope Leo praying in May for the hungry
Given the technological advances of our time, it is a baffling challenge. Since the tragedy could be solved, why hasn't it?
Take a moment to watch and pray with Pope Leo on this video, here.
A war now in its fourth year
The conflict broke out on April 15, 2023, between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), headed by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti. Initially a power struggle between two members of the same junta that seized power during the 2021 coup, the war quickly turned into a devastating confrontation. It's been marked by war crimes, widespread sexual violence, indiscriminate strikes, and ethnic abuses, particularly in Darfur.
More than three years after hostilities began, the human toll remains difficult to establish. Estimates range from 150,000 to several hundred thousand deaths, depending on the source. Furthermore, there are over 14 million displaced people—with around 11 to 12 million internally displaced—and nearly 34 million people, or two-thirds of the population, are in urgent need of humanitarian aid.
Famine is striking several regions, notably Darfur and Kordofan. While the army has largely retaken the capital of Khartoum, fighting continues in the west and other areas.
Seeking international normalization
Appointed in May 2025 by Gen. al-Burhan, Kamil Idris is a former high-ranking UN official and experienced diplomat who leads a government aligned with the Sudanese Armed Forces. His Vatican visit is part of a strategy to seek international support to legitimize the army's authority and call for a political solution.
The call for a ceasefire and sincere dialogue among all Sudanese parties reflects Khartoum's official position. The government is seeking to isolate the RSF while soliciting support from the international community and religious actors.
Visits by Sudanese leaders to the Vatican are rare. Pope John Paul II's trip in 1993 remains the only papal visit to the Muslim-majority country. However, successive popes have regularly paid close attention to this underreported war. During his Angelus address on November 2, 2025, Leo XIV denounced the "unbearable suffering" endured by the population.
The ongoing civil war has also been accompanied by abuses against the Catholic minority. Khartoum's cathedral was vandalized and damaged during the fighting in 2023 and 2024, and the local archbishop was forced to flee to the city of Port Sudan.
Neighboring South Sudan, which seceded from Sudan in 2011, has been the focus of special attention from the Holy See since the pontificate of Pope Francis. The Argentine pontiff visited the country in 2023 and worked toward national reconciliation, most notably by kneeling before belligerent leaders gathered at the Vatican in 2019 and kissing their feet.
