Marilyn Cahatol

Pope Leo XIV prays at the end of his first weekly general audience at St Peter's Square in The Vatican on May 21, 2025. Filippo Monteforte, AFP

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<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17651823937481765182392105.jpeg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Pope Leo XIV prays at the end of his first weekly general audience at St Peter&#x27;s Square in The Vatican on May 21, 2025. <em>Filippo Monteforte, AFP </em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — Pope Leo XIV on Sunday prayed for the victims of floods in Southeast and South Asia spurred by weeks of heavy rain.</p><p>A slew of tropical storms and monsoon rains has pummelled Southeast and South Asia, triggering landslides and flash floods from the rainforests of Indonesia&#x27;s western Sumatra island to the highland plantations of Sri Lanka.</p><p>“I am close to the people of South and Southeast Asia, who have been severely tested by recent natural disasters. Let us #PrayTogether for the victims, the families who mourn their loved ones, and all those who are providing assistance,” Pope Leo said in an X post.</p><p>“I urge the international community and all people of good will to support our brothers and sisters in those regions with concrete gestures of solidarity,” he added.</p><p>Seasonal monsoon rains are a feature of life in South Asia and Southeast Asia, flooding rice fields and nourishing the growth of other key crops.</p><p>However, climate change is making the phenomenon more erratic, unpredictable, and deadly throughout the regions.</p><p>In the Philippines, entire towns have been buried in floodwaters driven by powerful typhoons in recent months.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/12/6/remulla-more-arrest-warrants-on-flood-control-mess-out-in-next-2-weeks-1844">Remulla: More arrest warrants on flood control mess out in next 2 weeks</a></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/12/3/flood-control-saga-nearing-endgame-pco-says-1220">Flood control saga &#x27;nearing endgame,&#x27; PCO says</a></div><p>Meanwhile, <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/12/4/-no-food-indonesians-scrounge-for-supplies-after-flood-disaster-1157">Indonesia reported shortages of food</a>, shelter, and medicine as the death toll reached 950 Monday following weeks of heavy rain.</p><p>The downpours and subsequent landslides injured at least 5,000 people and devastated infrastructure. Hospitals, schools and offices are in ruins, while many bridges have been destroyed, cutting off communities.</p><p>In Sri lanka, the military deployed thousands of extra troops to aid recovery efforts there after a devastating cyclone cut a swathe of destruction <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/12/7/sri-lanka-issues-landslide-warnings-as-cyclone-toll-hits-627-2246">killing 627 people</a></p><p>More than two million people -- nearly 10 percent of the population -- have been affected by Cyclone Ditwah, the worst on the island this century.</p><div><strong>— With a report from Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div style="text-align:center"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZnL0DFTyHf8?si=xJeGzxmpCek7KhRF" title="YouTube video player" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>

<p>Pope Leo XIV on Sunday prayed for the victims of floods in Southeast and South Asia spurred by weeks of heavy rain.</p>

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday prayed for the victims of floods in Southeast and South Asia spurred by weeks of heavy rain.

Pope Leo prays for Southeast Asia flood victims

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Pope Leo prays for Southeast Asia flood victims

Marilyn Cahatol,

ABS-CBN News

Published Dec 08, 2025 04:48 PM PHT

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Pope Leo XIV

Flood

Southeast Asia

South Asia

Natural disaster

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