The Pope publicly admonished President Bush today for the war in Iraq and the prisoner abuse scandal. Richard Owen, left, Rome Correspondent, reports.

How did the Pope rebuke Mr Bush?

It is clear that the Pope still takes the view that war is always a defeat for humanity and not the way to resolve conflict, and he condemned the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib in very strong terms.

He said: "In the past few weeks other deplorable events have come to light which have troubled the civic and religious conscience of all, and made more difficult a serene and resolute commitment to shared human values: in the absence of such a commitment neither war nor terrorism will ever be overcome."

This is pretty tough language even for an anti-war Pope. I think a lot of Americans will focus on this rebuke of Mr Bush, whose body language did suggest that, unusually for him, he was something of a chastened man.

That last phrase of the Pope's - "neither war nor terrorism will ever be overcome" - is a direct blow to the very foundation of the policy on which Mr Bush has staked his presidency.

Why was the Pope's speaking ability so weak?

He did not appear in good shape. It was one of his poorest performances, and it was not clear if Mr Bush could actually understand what was being said.

The Pope is 84 and has had a very limited programme since September, when on a trip to Slovakia he could not deliver his arrival speech or move around without his mobile platform because of the debilitating effects of Parkinson's disease.

In fact the Vatican at first refused Mr Bush's request for an audience as it clashed with a trip to Switzerland that the Pope had planned. They wanted the pontiff to conserve his strength before that gruelling trip, the first since Slovakia.

But Mr Bush changed his own schedule. He was very keen to have a photo opportunity with the Pope in a critical election year.

Times Recommends

• Rebel militias dig in as Russia leaves Georgia
• Lebanon's drug barons reap a bumper harvest
• A chilly wind is blowing down Main Street