"I thought she had courage” - TRUMP 'shocked' by Italian PM after she defends Pope LEO and denounces Iran war

Wednesday, April 15, 2026 -President, Donald Trump delivered a blunt public rebuke to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Tuesday, signaling a dramatic fracture in what was once a close trans-Atlantic alliance.

In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Trump expressed deep disappointment in Meloni’s recent policy shifts, particularly her refusal to support U.S. military efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

"I'm shocked by her. I thought she had courage. I was wrong," Trump was quoted as saying, marking a stark departure from his previous praise for her as a "great leader."

The friction between the two leaders has intensified over the war with Iran and Meloni’s defense of the papacy. After Meloni denounced Trump’s weekend criticism of Pope Leo as "unacceptable," the President hit back with equal intensity.

"She is the one who is unacceptable, because she does not care whether Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow Italy up in two minutes if it had the chance," Trump asserted.

He further accused Italy of wanting America "to do the job for her" while the country continues to suffer from some of the highest energy costs in the world due to the ongoing conflict.

This public falling-out carries significant political risks for Meloni, who had previously leveraged her relationship with Trump to boost her international standing. However, with 66% of Italians now holding a negative view of the U.S. leader and Meloni facing domestic challenges including a recent defeat in a referendum on judicial reform, the association is increasingly viewed as a liability.

As Italy remains heavily dependent on energy imports, Trump’s claim that they "depend on Donald Trump to keep it [the Strait] open" adds further pressure to a relationship that has transitioned from a strategic partnership to a public diplomatic feud.

Antisemitic Violence in 2025 Killed Highest Number of Jews in 30 Years, Study Finds

Violent antisemitic attacks in 2025 resulted in the highest number of Jewish fatalities in three decades, according to a new annual report from Tel Aviv University. Throughout the year, 20 Jews were murdered in four separate attacks, the deadliest being a Hanukkah attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, which claimed 15 lives. The report indicates that the total number of incidents in Western countries remains significantly higher than in 2022, despite various diplomatic efforts to curb regional conflicts in the Middle East

In the United Kingdom, antisemitic incidents rose from 3,556 in 2024 to 3,700 in 2025, including a fatal car-ramming and stabbing attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year. The United States also saw targeted violence, such as a shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., that killed two Israeli embassy staff members. The report's authors noted that “high levels of antisemitism have become a normalized feature in societies with large Jewish minorities,” observing that even where total incident numbers fell slightly, such as in France and Germany, the levels of physical violence often increased or remained dramatically higher than pre-war figures.

The study also leveled harsh criticism at the Israeli government and media for politicizing the definition of antisemitism. By frequently expanding the term to include policy criticism, the report concludes that authorities have “robbed the word of meaning” and risk “discrediting a crucial fight by politicizing it and emptying it of analytic meaning.” The authors argued that the label of antisemitism is harsh and should be applied only after careful consideration based on solid, objective criteria.

Furthermore, the report highlighted a concerning normalization of antisemitic rhetoric within American politics. While acknowledging President Donald Trump’s historic pro-Israel actions—including the Abraham Accords and the recognition of Jerusalem—the study warned that the current political environment has tolerated conspiracy theories and rhetoric to an unprecedented degree. U.S. historian Christopher Browning emphasized in the report that the mixture of conspiracy theory, racism, and authoritarianism historically leads to antisemitism, stating, “Historically, when you mix conspiracy theory, racism, and authoritarianism, you almost always get to antisemitism.”

Antisemitic Violence in 2025 Killed Highest Number of Jews in 30 Years, Study Finds

Violent antisemitic attacks in 2025 resulted in the highest number of Jewish fatalities in three decades, according to a new annual report from Tel Aviv University. Throughout the year, 20 Jews were murdered in four separate attacks, the deadliest being a Hanukkah attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, which claimed 15 lives. The report indicates that the total number of incidents in Western countries remains significantly higher than in 2022, despite various diplomatic efforts to curb regional conflicts in the Middle East.

In the United Kingdom, antisemitic incidents rose from 3,556 in 2024 to 3,700 in 2025, including a fatal car-ramming and stabbing attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year. The United States also saw targeted violence, such as a shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., that killed two Israeli embassy staff members. The report's authors noted that “high levels of antisemitism have become a normalized feature in societies with large Jewish minorities,” observing that even where total incident numbers fell slightly, such as in France and Germany, the levels of physical violence often increased or remained dramatically higher than pre-war figures.

The study also leveled harsh criticism at the Israeli government and media for politicizing the definition of antisemitism. By frequently expanding the term to include policy criticism, the report concludes that authorities have “robbed the word of meaning” and risk “discrediting a crucial fight by politicizing it and emptying it of analytic meaning.” The authors argued that the label of antisemitism is harsh and should be applied only after careful consideration based on solid, objective criteria.

Furthermore, the report highlighted a concerning normalization of antisemitic rhetoric within American politics. While acknowledging President Donald Trump’s historic pro-Israel actions—including the Abraham Accords and the recognition of Jerusalem—the study warned that the current political environment has tolerated conspiracy theories and rhetoric to an unprecedented degree. U.S. historian Christopher Browning emphasized in the report that the mixture of conspiracy theory, racism, and authoritarianism historically leads to antisemitism, stating, “Historically, when you mix conspiracy theory, racism, and authoritarianism, you almost always get to antisemitism.”