At the end of the Angelus, recited from Castel Gandolfo (Italy) this Sunday July 26, Pope Leo XIV gave his support to all those suffering from the increase in fires. “Faced with the devastating fires which, in recent days, have ravaged several localities in France and Spain, I express my closeness and I invite prayer for the people affected as well as for the work of the rescuers,” he said.
High heat, violent winds and prolonged drought have caused very serious fires in France and Spain. In the Iberian Peninsula, the regions of Madrid and Toledo, Andalusia and the province of Leon are particularly affected. In France, it is the Landes massif and the Gironde which are particularly impacted, but also the Var, the Bouches-du-Rhône and the Fontainebleau forest, south of Paris.
Recurring speeches
The Spanish and French governments have decreed exceptional means to fight the fires. This Saturday, the French Air Force deployed an Airbus A400M to Lacanau (Gironde) to dump a stock of retardant to slow the progression of the fire.
In recent years, popes have regularly provided support to the victims of numerous fires. This was the case for fires in South Korea in March 2025, in California in January 2025, in Chile in February 2024, as well as in Italy, Portugal, Greece and Hawaii in August 2023. In May 2026, during the visit of Leo American pope had met with families of victims and called for a moral and ecological renaissance.
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