26/05/2026

TUESDAY | MAY 26, 2026

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‘Slow down on AI’

Leo also expressed concern that leaders could start wars to distract citizens from domestic issues. “We cannot rule out the possibility that some leaders may consider armed conflict as an effective way of diverting attention from domestic problems and a cynical tool for managing difficulties,” he stated. The pope said any use of AI in warfare “must be subject to the most rigorous ethical constraints” and called it “not permissible” to entrust AI systems with lethal decisions. Leo, the 14th pope to choose that name, cited centuries of papal teachings on social justice issues before addressing the ethics of AI systems. He invoked his predecessor Leo XIII, who published a famed encyclical in 1891 that called for better pay and conditions for labourers during the Industrial Revolution. Leo XIV decried what he called “new forms of slavery” endured by people tending AI systems and factory workers who produce the technological devices, such as computers and smartphones, on which AI is used. “In some regions, children and adolescents work in dangerous conditions, crushing the materials from which rare earth elements are extracted,” wrote the pope. “The bodies of these people are scarred, injured and worn down so that computational flow may continue uninterruptedly,” he said. “This reality deeply challenges the moral conscience of our time.” The pope also acknowledged that the Catholic Church did not forcefully condemn transatlantic slavery until

spanning nearly 43,000 words, has been in the works nearly since Leo’s election as pope a little more than a year ago. The document, which addressed AI as its main theme, also decried the number of wars roiling the world, lamented the weakening of multilateral organisations and warned that arms industry profits were a driving force behind conflicts. “The past 60 years have been marked by conflicts of astonishing brutality, often affecting civilian populations on a massive scale,” stated Leo, in the English-language text. “Humanity is slipping into a violent culture of power, where peace no longer appears as a responsibility to be taken on, but as a fragile interval between conflicts,” he said. Leo also made one of the clearest statements yet from a pope repudiating the just war theory, a doctrine the Church has used since at least the fifth century to evaluate conflicts. The doctrine, which generally says that wars should only be waged in order to defend against aggression, has also been invoked by Trump administration officials, including Vice-President JD Vance, a Catholic, to defend the Iran war. “The ‘just war’ theory which has all too often been used to justify any kind of war, is now outdated,” wrote Leo. “The use of force, violence and weapons reflects a relational poverty that always has disastrous consequences for civilian populations.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in New Delhi that the US would give diplomacy every chance to succeed before exploring “alternatives”, after President Donald Trump said on Sunday he had told his representatives not to rush into any Iran deal. There was a “pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the strait, get the strait (of Hormuz) open, enter into a very real, significant, time-limited negotiation on the nuclear matter, and hopefully we can pull it off,” Rubio said. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said in a weekly briefing yesterday that a conclusion had been reached on many topics, but that does not mean that “we’re close to signing an agreement”. The potential memorandum of understanding contains 14 points and is focused on ending the war and the US naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, in exchange for Iran taking steps to ensure safe transit through the strategic waterway, he said. At present the talks are not on the nuclear issue, which will be negotiated over a 60-day period if the framework accord is agreed, Baghaei said. He said the potential accord VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo urged governments to slow down the development of AI systems in his first major document released yesterday, warning that they spread misinformation, prioritise conflict and risk leading the world down a path of unending war. Leo, who has adopted a more forceful tone in recent months and has drawn the ire of President Donald Trump after criticising the Iran war, made a range of impassioned appeals to world leaders in the lengthy text, known as an encyclical. The first US pope called for ownership of AI data not to be left solely in private hands, for policymakers to protect the rights of workers and keep children safe from the technology, and urged the cooling of competition between AI companies. “What is needed is a more active political involvement that is capable of slowing things down when everything is accelerating,” said Leo in the text, entitled Magnifica Humanitas (Magnificent Humanity). The pope called for “robust legal frameworks, independent oversight, informed users and a political system that does not abdicate its responsibility”. Encyclicals are one of the highest forms of teaching from a pontiff to the Church’s 1.4 billion members. Yesterday’s highly anticipated text, o Pope Leo warns of unending war

The Encyclical Letter Magnifica Humanitas (Magnificent Humanity). – AFPPIC

Australian activists report abuse ISTANBUL: Australian activists who took part in a flotilla attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza started arriving home, recounting torture and sexual abuse during Israeli detention. Eleven Australians were among hundreds of international activists aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla when it was intercepted and attacked by Israeli forces last week in international waters and they were detained. Many of the group, including some Australians, said they suffered broken bones, being tasered in the face and being injected with substances, broadcaster SBS News reported. Activist Violet Coco, who arrived at Melbourne Airport yesterday, said Israeli authorities beat, tortured and sexually assaulted activists. She said the detainees also suffered fractures and head injuries, while some people went without insulin and blood pressure medication for several days. Coco said she was pushed through a dark room, groped and repeatedly struck while in detention. Gemma O’Toole was the first of the activists to return on Sunday and narrated a similar ordeal. O’Toole, 23, told Australian Broadcasting Corporation that Israeli forces subjected activists to physical abuse and sexual violence. Surya McEwen said he was held for 80 hours and beaten in a room while Israeli soldiers sang the national anthem. – Bernama “A subtle temptation may emerge, namely the thought that the problems are too big and we are too small, and that our choices, therefore, cannot make a difference,” he wrote. “Certainly, not everyone has the same power to make a difference,” Leo said. “Yet, no one is without responsibility. We all have our own areas for action.” – Reuters

the 19th century, and made a personal apology. “For this, in the name of the Church, I sincerely ask for pardon.” Leo said society must face “crucial questions” about how AI was developing and the general direction of global leadership. Leo urged the world not to give up on addressing the possible risks of AI systems.

Iran, US play down hopes of imminent breakthrough NEW DELHI: Iran and the United States played down hopes for an imminent breakthrough in efforts to end their three-month-old war yesterday, with the top US diplomat saying Washington will either get a good agreement or deal with the country in “another way”.

Hassan Hassanzadeh, Commander of the Mohammad Rasoolullah Corps, Greater Tehran, reaches out to shake hands with Habibollah Sayyari (right), Commander of the Iranian Navy Tehran at a gathering on Sunday to commemorate those killed in former wars and in the US-Israel-led war. – AFPPIC

of sanctions and the release of tens of billions of dollars of Iranian oil revenues frozen in foreign banks. Iranian sources had told Reuters that in future stages, “feasible formulas” could be found to resolve the dispute over its highly enriched uranium stockpile, including diluting the material under the supervision of the UN nuclear watchdog. – Reuters

which shares the opposite shore of the waterway. The strait has been effectively closed since the start of the war on Feb 28 with only a trickle of vessels passing through. The two sides remain at odds on several issues, such as Iran’s nuclear ambitions, Israel’s war in Lebanon and Tehran’s demands for the lifting

contained no specific details on management of the strait. Iran will not charge tolls for ships to pass through the strait, Baghaei said. However, he said there would be a cost for services that will be offered, such as navigation and steps to protect the environment, under a protocol to be agreed with Oman,