Pope Leo has appealed to world leaders to treat migrants more humanely. During a trip to the Canary Islands, he threw a wreath of flowers into the waves to remember those he called “our brothers and sisters” who had died while trying to reach the shores of Europe.

Pope Leo XIV: “We cannot grow accustomed to counting the dead. Human dignity has no passport and does not lose its value when crossing a border. May history not accuse us of turning the pain of those who suffer into a common sight along our shores. Today, here by the sea, every individual that arrives asks us what remains of our humanity. Sooner or later, it will be known whether we protected life or whether we yielded to indifference.”

Many migrants who had fled to Spain’s Canary Islands praised Pope Leo’s trip. Sankoun Camara is a migrant from Guinea.

Sankoun Camara: “It gives you hope. The pope came for the migrants. I’m one of them, so I’m happy to see the pope. Maybe he can solve the migrants’ problems.”