ISIS threatens Pope Leo XIV with reprisal before his visit to Spain

The terrorist group Islamic State (ISIS) has issued a series of threats against Pope Leo XIV, who plans to visit Spain in June 2026. Despite the radicals’ calls for the pontiff’s physical removal, the Vatican has confirmed that the program of the visit will remain unchanged, and Spanish authorities have already begun preparations to provide increased security measures.

According to the Tribune Chrétienne news portal, radical jihadists have distributed a series of propaganda posters calling for the assassination of the head of the Catholic Church during his stay in Madrid and Barcelona. The materials, published under the slogan “Make his days last,” name public meetings and solemn worship services as targets. The terrorists pay special attention to the ceremony for the consecration of the Christ Tower in the Sagrada Familia cathedral.

The trip, scheduled to take place between June 6 and June 12, 2026, is fraught not only with external threats but also with domestic political complexities. Under pressure from Catalan politicians, including Carles Puigdemont, the Vatican has been forced to change official protocol. As a result, the original plan to use Spanish during the consecration of the tower in Barcelona was revised in favor of the Catalan language.

The Spanish authorities introduced a regime of special vigilance in places of mass gathering of people to prevent possible provocations and terrorist attacks. It is noteworthy that these threats sounded against the background of recent initiatives of the pontiff, in which the pope called on representatives of Christianity and Islam to join forces for the joint “revival of humanity”.

Recall, earlier we reported that thecourt in Istanbul convicted the three main defendants in the case of the attack on St. Mary’s Catholic Church, sentencing each of them to two life terms and an additional 143 years in prison. The incident, which claimed one life, took place in January 2024 and the terrorist group Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility.