Pope Leo XIV, the leader of the world’s Catholics, expressed sorrow on Saturday over the deaths of children caused by drug-related violence on the second day of his visit to South America.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported early Sunday, November 8, that the Pope visited areas of Uruguay’s capital affected by drug-related crime and violence during his trip to the country.
According to the report, the murder rate in this impoverished area is four times the national average, and residents speak with deep concern about the dangers they face, including armed violence that has become part of their daily lives.
Pope Leo said: “In Uruguay, there are children who do not go to school because they fear they may never return home.”
He added that in a country so rich in resources, children should never go to bed hungry and certainly should never be subjected to violence so severe that they lose their lives.
The Pope also warned of the risk that the use of artificial intelligence in education could lead to the erosion of human qualities, urging schools and universities to “put human beings before algorithms.”
